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AN ACCOUNT 

OF 

THE LAWYERS OF GROTON, 

MASSACHUSETTS, 

INCLUDING 

NATIVES WHO HAVE PRACTISED ELSEWHERE. 

AND THOSE ALSO WHO HAVE STUDIED 

LAW 7 IN THE TOWN. 



0Hitlj an 3pucntux\ 



By SAMUEL A. GREEN, M.D. 
ii 



GROTON 

1892. 






Slntorrstt? ^3rcss: 
John Wilson and Son, Cambridge. 

' efT 



PREFACE. 



The town of Groton, in her list of lawyers, can 
show an array of distinguished names rarely equalled 
in any small community within the Commonwealth. 
The prominence of these names for a century and a 
half seems to deserve special notice, and it is with 
reference to this fact that the following account has 
been prepared. 

Among the lawyers who have lived and practised in 
the town, are two Governors of, the Commonwealth, 
one United States Senator, / foh-vee. other Members 
of Congress, besides a Delegate to the Continental 
Congress, a Member of the President's Cabinet, vari- 
ous Justices and Chief Justices of different Courts, 
three Speakers of the Massachusetts House of Rep- 
resentatives, an Attorney-General of the Common- 
wealth, a President of the State Senate, and 



Members of the Executive Council. 

Among the natives of Groton, and those con- 
nected with the town by residence, who have prac- 
tised law elsewhere, are names equally honorable ; 



4 PREFACE. 

and in the partial list of lawyers, as here given, who 
studied their profession at Groton, wholly or in part, 
are names alike distinguished. 

Timothy Bigelow and Luther Lawrence were both 
Speakers of the House of Representatives ; and at 
different periods, while residents of the town, occu- 
pied the same dwelling-house. It is somewhat sin- 
gular that the present owner of the place, Governor 
Boutwell, was himself once the Democratic candi- 
date for the Speakership, when the Legislature 
met on January 6, 1847. Timothy Fuller, another 
Speaker of the House, was afterward a resident of 
the town for some years before his death, which 
occurred on October 1, 1835. He was the father 
of Margaret Fuller, otherwise known as Countess 
d'Ossoli. John Ouincy Adams Griffin, a former resi- 
dent, was a member of the General Court from 
Charlestown, during the session of 1855, when he 
was the Free-Soil candidate for the Speakership. 
All these names are included among the lawyers of 
Groton, whose sketches are here given. 

The town has also furnished seven Mayors for 
New England cities, of whom five were lawyers. 
The cities of Boston and Fitchburg each have had 
two Mayors who were natives of the town ; the 
cities of Lowell and of Gardiner, Maine, each a 
Mayor ; and the city of Charlestown, a Mayor, who, 
though not a native, belonged to a Groton family, 
and passed his boyhood and early manhood in the 



PREFACE. 5 

town. Another son of Groton was a mayoral candi- 
date in the city of Bradford, Pennsylvania, ten years 
ago, when he was defeated by a small majority. 

This Account was prepared originally for the 
Groton Historical Series, and the various references 
in the pages are to that publication. For the use 
of friends and at their request, One Hundred Cop- 
ies are now struck off in this form. 

S. A. G. 
March 16, 1S92. 



CONTENTS. 



Page 

The Lawyers of Groton i 

Natives of Groton, and Persons connected by Resi- 
dence with the Town, who have practised Law 

elsewhere 77 

A Partial List of those who have studied Law at 

Groton, with Sketches of their Lives 113 

APPENDIX. 

Groton as a Shire Town 141 

Groton Probate Court 149 

Miscellaneous 150 

List of Marriages tK2 



Index 1 



:>/ 



AN ACCOUNT 



OF 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 



For many years after the settlement of New England there 
was no distinct class of men following the profession of law 
but the practice was taken up in connection with some other 
calling. Several of the magistrates of the Colony had been 
educated in England as lawyers, but here they never appeared 
at the bar as advocates, though at times they sat on the bench 
and wore the ermine. During the Colonial period of Massa- 
chusetts it is doubtful if any educated attorney ever practised 
in her Courts of Justice, with the single exception of Thomas 
Lechford, who lived in Boston for three years only; and even 
he, at one time, for tampering with the jury, was debarred 
by the Legislature from pleading any man's cause, except his 
own, before the Courts. The first code of laws ever proposed 
to the Colony was prepared by John Cotton, a minister of 
Boston, though it was rejected; and another code, prepared 
by Nathaniel Ward, a minister of Ipswich, was adopted in De- 
cember, 1 64 1, and at that date became known as the Body of 
Liberties. This code was fraught, relatively, with as big results 
to the Colonists as Magna Charta ever was to the English na- 
tion, and is to-day, in a great measure, the basis of all public 
legislation in this Commonwealth. At one time Amos Rich- 
ardson, a merchant tailor of Boston, and a petitioner for Groton 
Plantation, was active as an attorney in the Courts ; and during 
Governor Andros's administration Dr. Benjamin Bullivant, 



IO THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

a physician of Boston, was the Attorney-General. Instances 
like these are numerous, and show that in the early days of the 
Colony, when professional services were required, the lawyers, 
like the physicians of the same period, were re-inforced from 
any class that had the needed skill, and particularly from the 
ministers. Under the First Charter there was in every im- 
portant town a class of officers who performed certain duties 
which were closely akin to those now undertaken for the most 
part by the legal profession ; and such men, although they 
had never been formally admitted to the bar, to-day would 
probably be lawyers. 

Of this class were the Commissioners of Small Causes, who 
were empowered to act in all cases within the jurisdiction of 
a magistrate, and were approved, either by the Court of As- 
sistants or the County Courts, upon the request of any town 
where there was no resident magistrate. They were three in 
number in each of such towns, and were chosen by the peo- 
ple. The following entry is found in the Groton town-records, 
under date of December 12, 1681 : — 

Comishinurs too iud small casis in Toown acordin too law 
Captin [James] Parkr Leftenint [William] Lackin Insin [Nathaniel] 
Lorins 

On December 11, 1682, these same Commissioners were 
re-chosen. 

Of this class also was the Clerk of the Writs, who was 
"nominated by each town and allowed by each Shire Court, 
to grant Sumons and Attachments in all civil actions, at the 
liberty of the Plaintiff, and Summons for witnesses," and " to 
grant replevins, and to take bond with sufficient security of 
the party to prosecute the suite." For twelve years before 
the town of Groton was destroyed by the Indians in the 
spring of 1 676, James Fiske was Clerk of the Writs, and, as 
such, made returns of the Births, Deaths, and Marriages to 
the County Court at Cambridge. There was probably such 
an officer chosen on November 1, 1680, as is inferred from 
the town-records; and a few years later, on April 21, 1686, 
Josiah Parker was elected to the office. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. II 

On December 15, 1669, at a public meeting, the selectmen 
were authorized " to petition to the [General] Court for one 
to marry persons in our towne." In the early days of New 
England marriages were performed by magistrates only ; and 
it was many years before ministers of the Church were allowed 
to take part in the ceremony. It is likely that the petition 
was granted, and that some officer was duly appointed. 

The Assistants of Massachusetts, often called Magistrates, 
were the forerunners of the Provincial Council and the State 
Senate. They were few in numbers, and, in point of dignity 
and honor, next to the Governor and Deputy-Governor. Their 
duties were largely of a judicial character as well as legislative. 
Major Simon Willard, the only citizen of the town who ever 
was a member of this body, became a resident of Groton 
about the year 167 1. He was first chosen to the position 
of Assistant in 1654, when living at Concord, and remained 
in the office till the day of his death. Major Willard was a 
native of Kent, England, and came to Massachusetts in 1634. 
He lived first at Cambridge and Concord, then at Lancaster, 
from which town he removed to Groton ; and in all these 
places he exerted a wide influence. His name first appears 
in the Groton records on December 10, 1672, when he was 
chosen one of the selectmen. In his day he filled various 
civil offices, and was a noted military man. His farm in 
Groton was situated at Nonacoicus, now within the limits of 
Ayer; and his dwelling-house was the first building burned 
at the attack on the town, March 13, 1676, in Philip's War. 
During several months previously Major Willard had been 
engaged with his command in scouting along the line of 
frontier settlements and protecting the inhabitants. At this 
assault he came with a company of cavalry to the relief of the 
town, though he did not reach the place in time to be of 
service in its defence. He died at Charlestown, on April 24, 
1676, a very few weeks after Groton was abandoned. 

Major Willard was thrice married, — first, before leaving 
England, to Mary Sharpe, of Horsmonden, County of Kent ; 
secondly, after his arrival in Massachusetts, to Elizabeth 
Dunster, who died about six months after her marriage ; and 



12 THE LAWYERS OF CROTON. 

thirdly, to Mary Dunster. He had seventeen children ; and 
of this large family, all the sons, nine in number, and five of 
his eight daughters, reached mature age and were married, 
leaving issue at the time of their death. Two of his descend- 
ants were presidents of Harvard College. 

During the last century a distinction between attorneys 
and barristers was recognized by the Massachusetts bar, and 
the degree of Barrister was conferred by the Courts with 
considerable form and ceremony. It required three years of 
study to become an Attorney, and two years of practice as 
such in the Inferior Court, and two more in the Superior 
Court, to become a Barrister. The distinction was finally 
abolished by the Revised Statutes of 1836. 

In this paper I class all attorneys, counsellors, or barris- 
ters as lawyers ; and I include among their number several 
yeomen as well as physicians, who represented the learning 
and cultivation of an early period, and who either practised 
in the courts or sat on the bench ; and I include also several 
persons who in modern times have pursued a partial course in 
the study of law, either at the Harvard Law School or else- 
where, though they may not have been formally admitted to 
the bar. 

Benjamin Prescott was appointed by the Governor and 
Council on June 27, 1735, a Special Justice of the Superior 
Court of Judicature, in place of Paul Dudley. From time to 
time such judges were appointed to sit at the trial of particular 
cases, in which the standing justices either declined to act, or 
were thought to be incompetent on account of personal inter- 
est. In this instance the case was an action of ejectment in 
Worcester County, where the petitioners thought that Dudley 
was interested. On December 22, 1736, Mr. Prescott was ap- 
pointed, with three others, a Special Justice of the Inferior 
Court of Common Pleas in Middlesex County. The appoint- 
ments were made on the petition of Timothy Sprague, of 
Maiden, for the trial of certain causes relating to Spot Pond, in 
which the whole bench of justices was said to be interested. On 
November 10, 1737, he was again appointed, on the petition of 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 3 

the inhabitants and proprietors of the town of Boston, a 
Special Justice of the Superior Court in divers causes, in 
place of Paul Dudley. In the latter instance the case re- 
lated principally to a dispute over some real estate, where it 
was thought that Dudley might be biased in his judgment, as 
he held lands in Boston. At that period the people watched 
the decisions of the bench with great scrutiny, and guarded 
popular rights with extreme jealousy. 

Benjamin Prescott was the youngest son of Jonas and Mary 
(Loker) Prescott, and born at Groton, on January 4, 1695-6. 
He was brought up on his father's farm, and even as a young 
man filled many important places of trust and responsibil- 
ity in the affairs of the town. In the year 17 17 he was ap- 
pointed a Lieutenant of a military company, and in 1724 a 
Lieutenant of a snow-shoe company raised to protect the town 
from Indian invasion. 

On December 8, 1724, the Massachusetts House of Repre- 
sentatives, according to the printed Journal (page 61), passed 
a Resolution, requiring the enrolment of a certain number of 
men, who were to be provided " with a good suitable pair of 
Snow-shoes & Moggasins fit for Service." They were to be 
drilled in marching and running on the snow, and, on the 
discovery of the enemy, were to go at once in pursuit. These 
soldiers became known as " snow-shoe men," and constituted 
a kind of pre-Revolutionary minute-men. Under this Resolve 
Groton and Chelmsford each were to furnish forty soldiers, — 
a larger number than was assigned to any other town in Mid- 
dlesex County. On March 26, 1725, according to the manu- 
script records of the Council in the State House, Captain John 
Shepley presented a certificate that he had drawn forth 
twenty men out of his company at Groton to be snow-shoe 
men ; and at the same time Captain Jonas Prescott presented 
a certificate that he had drawn out twenty men from his com- 
pany at Groton for the same purpose. Perhaps they were 
selected by lot. In this command young Prescott held a 
commission as Lieutenant. 

Snow-shoes were first used by soldiers in Dummer's War ; 
and, on December 17, 1729, according to the printed Journal 



14 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

(page 173) of the House of Representatives, a petition for 
the grant of a tract of land was presented from a large num- 
ber of men who had served under Captain John Lovewell, 
" part of whom first discovered the Use of Snow-Shoes^ 

On May I, 1723, Benjamin Prescott was chosen a repre- 
sentative to the General Court, and between that date and the 
time of his death, in different years, he was re-chosen seven 
times. It is said by Mr. Butler, in his History of Groton 
(page 290), that Benjamin Prescott in the year 1735 "was 
chosen agent of the Province to the Court of Great Britain, 
which office he declined, on account of not having had the 
small pox, which disease was prevalent at the time." A care- 
ful examination of the Council records in the State House 
fails to confirm the statement, though it shows the appoint- 
ment of the other agents, both before and after this period. 
Perhaps the position was offered to Mr. Prescott in an infor- 
mal and unofficial way, so that it would not be a matter of 
record. 

It is also stated by Mr. Butler, on the same page, that Mr. 
Prescott " died in the prime of life, August 3, 1735, of a sur- 
feit, caused by great exertion to save some hay from a shower." 
While this diagnosis of the disease is very obscure, I am in- 
clined to think that he died of apoplexy, dependent on Bright's 
disease. The date of his death, however, is given wrong, as 
he died on August 3, 1738 ; and this statement is borne out, not 
only by the inscription on his gravestone, but by the following 
extract from a newspaper of that period : — 

Thursday last [August 3] died at his Seat in Groton, after three 
or four Days Illness, the Hon. Benjamin Prescot, Esq ; Representa- 
tive for that Town, one of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace for 
the County of Middlesex, and a Special Justice of the Superiour 
Court of Judicature ; a Gentleman greatly lamented by all that 
knew him. 

"The Bo-ton Evening-Post," August 7, 1738. 

On June 11, 17 18, Benjamin Prescott was married to Abigail, 
daughter of the Honorable Thomas and Mary (Wilson) Oliver, 
of Cambridge ; and they were blessed with three children, all 
sons, who became useful citizens in their native town as well 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 5 

as distinguished men in the Province. At the time of his 
death he was a member of the General Court, where he was 
succeeded by Captain Nathaniel Sawtell, whose surname is 
sometimes written Sartell. 

There has been much confusion between the Groton fam- 
ilies of Sawtell and Sartell, as they have generally been con- 
sidered distinct branches ; but they probably belonged to the 
same stock. 

William Lawrence was a son of John and Anna (Tarbell) 
Lawrence, and born at Cambridge Farms, now Lexington, on 
August 1 1, 1697. The father, soon after his marriage, removed 
from Groton to that precinct, where he had a large family of 
children, of whom three sons and one daughter married and 
settled in Groton, and also brought up large families. On 
June 27, 1722, Mr. Lawrence was married to Susanna, daughter 
of Jonas and Mary (Loker) Prescott, who was born on Decem- 
ber 31, 1 69 1, and a sister of Benjamin Prescott, previously 
mentioned ; and they were blessed with six children, who 
grew up and had families. He and his wife were admitted to 
the church on March 24, 1722-23, during the pastorate of the 
Reverend Caleb Trowbridge. Their eldest child, the Reverend 
William Lawrence, born at Groton on May 7, 1723, was a grad- 
uate of Harvard College in the Class of 1743, — the first of the 
name at that institution, — and the minister of the Church of 
Christ in Lincoln for more than thirty-one years. Their sec- 
ond son, Abel, born on February 25, 1729-30, represented the 
town of Groton and the districts of Pepperell and Shirley in 
the General Court for four years from 1762, following his 
father in that capacity. He was the town-clerk of Groton for 
seven years from March 1, 1757, a selectman and a justice of 
the peace, and the father of the late Abel Lawrence, Esq., of 
Salem. 

William Lawrence occupied a prominent position among 
his neighbors, filling many places of trust and responsibility 
in the affairs of the town. On May 25, 1743, he was chosen 
a member of the Great and General Court, and re-chosen six- 
teen times, — a longer term of service than has ever fallen to 



1 6 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

the lot of any other Groton representative. In military mat- 
ters he began as a private during Dummer's War, and rose 
through the different grades of service to the rank of colonel 
during the French and Indian War. His dwelling was situ- 
ated at the north corner of Main and Court Streets, on the 
site of Liberty Mall which was burned on March 31, 1878. 

On August 12, 1749, Mr. Lawrence was appointed a Special 
Justice of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas in the County 
of Middlesex, in all causes where any of the Standing Justices 
were interested ; and two years later, on June 21, 175 1, he 
received a similar appointment of like import. On June 26, 
1755, he was made a Justice of the Inferior Court in the 
County of Middlesex, in place of Thomas Fulham, Esq., who 
had resigned ; and he continued to hold the position as long as 
he lived. Governor Emory Washburn, in his "Sketches of the 
Judicial History of Massachusetts from 1630 to the Revolu- 
tion in 1775 " (page 337), alludes to the appointment, and 
says : " Judge Lawrence belonged to Groton, but I have found 
no memorial of him." 

Judge Lawrence was a large land-owner in Groton and its 
neighborhood ; and Ithamar Bard Sawtelle, in his History of 
Townsend (page 63), says that, with two exceptions, no man 
possessed in Townsend so many acres. According to John 
Boynton Hill's History of Mason, New Hampshire (page 34), 
he owned eleven farms of the two hundred into which that 
town was divided, after it had been surveyed and allotted ; 
and in the original grant made by the Masonian proprietors, 
his name appears first in the list of grantees (page 28). The 
township of Mason was divided, in conformity with an early 
custom, into smaller parcels of land, and each tract assigned 
to the several owners by lot ; and this custom furnishes the 
origin and explanation of the American use of the word lot as 
applied to a portion of land measured off, or appropriated for 
any particular purpose. 

Judge Lawrence died at Groton, on May 19, 1764 ; and I 
can give no better estimate of his character than that con- 
tained on a tablet to his memory in the old Burying-Ground, 
as follows, line for line : — 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 7 

Here lye the remains of Coll". William 
Lawrence, who departed this Life May iq'! 1 
A. D. 1764. Anno /Etatis 67. 
He was a Gentleman who in military life rose 
from the rank of Cap". Lieu' to the command of 
a Regiment. In the year 1 739, he was made a Justice 
of the peace afterwards Quorum unus ; a special 
Justice of the court of common Pleas for the County 
of Middlesex, and a standing Justice of the Court. 
He for many years represented the Town of Groton 
with the Districts of Pepperrell and Shirley in the 
general Assembly of this Province. In all his public 
betrustsments he acquitted himself with fidelity 
and honour. In private life his behavior was 
becoming his Christian profession. He was remark = 
ably industrious in the improvement of time, Just in his 
dealings, a good neighbour, a faithful friend, patient 
of injuries and ready to forgive them, gratefull to 
Benefactors, very ready in affording assistance to 
the widow and fatherless, and mercifull to all proper 
Objects of pity. He was a strict observer of the 
Lords Day, a constant and serious attender on 
the public exercises of Religin, a devout worship= 
er of God in his family. 

Blessed are the dead who dye in the Lord. 
Here also lies the Body of M? Susanna 
Lawrence Relict of the above named Coll" 
William Lawrence 

She was a woman of Piety and good Sense, 
An industrious, Prudent wife ; an indulgent 
Parent, a good Neighbour, a faithfull Friend, 
A hater of Hypocrisy and Guile ; a lover of 
Hospitality, Patiet under Affliction and Resigned to 
The will of Heaven in death by which she 
was called out of the world to Receive the 
Rewards of a faithfull Servant on the 10 th of 
Sep' & in the 80 1 ! 1 year of her Age. JD : 17 71. 

James Prescott was the eldest son of the Honorable 
Benjamin and Abigail (Oliver) Prescott, and born at Groton, 
on January 13, 1720-21. He was married, on June 18, 1752, 

3 



1 8 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

to his cousin Susanna, daughter of the Honorable William 
and Susanna (Prescott) Lawrence, of Groton ; and they had 
nine children, of whom the eldest, Benjamin, was killed in the 
battle of Bunker Hill, where he was a sergeant in Captain 
Joseph Moors's company. Like his two brothers, James was 
much engaged in affairs of a public nature. In the militia 
he passed through every grade of service, from that of the 
lowest commissioned officer of a company to the colonelcy of 
a regiment. In political life he was chosen a member of the 
General Court for fifteen years, a member of the Senate for 
six years, and of the Executive Council for six years. At 
the beginning of the Revolution he was a member of the 
three Provincial Congresses of Deputies and of the Board of 
War. On September 6, 1775, he was chosen Sheriff of 
Middlesex County, which position he held for five years ; 
and on December 21, 1782, he was appointed Justice of 
the Court of Common Pleas, which place he filled for nearly 
eighteen years. 

Few persons in the Commonwealth ever held so many 
different offices and of such a varied character as Judge 
Prescott, and yet he was not an office-seeker ; and he filled 
them all with credit to himself and with honor to the town. 
His dwelling was situated on the Great Road to Boston, 
perhaps half a mile southeast from the village, where he died 
on February 15, 1800. His wife, a native of Groton, was 
born on February 5, 1725-6, and died on December 26, 1805. 

Oliver Prescott was the youngest son of Benjamin and 
Abigail (Oliver) Prescott, and born at Groton, on April 27, 
173 1. He graduated at Harvard College with the highest 
honors in the Class of 1750, and then studied medicine under 
the tuition of Dr. Thomas Robie, of Sudbury. He took 
high rank in his profession, and in 178 1 was a charter 
member of the Massachusetts Medical Society; and at the 
Commencement of 1791 Harvard College conferred upon 
him the honorary degree of M.D., which before that time had 
been given by that institution to only seven persons. He 
was also the president of the Middlesex Medical Society 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 9 

during the whole period of its existence. Apart from these 
professional laurels, he likewise received many civil and mili- 
tary honors, besides some of a judicial character. 

Dr. Prescott was town-clerk during thirteen years, and 
selectman during thirty-two years. Before the Revolution, 
he held the offices of Major, Lieutenant-Colonel, Colonel, and 
Brigadier-General, respectively, in the militia, and in 1781 sec- 
ond Major-General ; but soon afterward, owing to ill health, 
he resigned his commission. He was a Justice of the Peace 
and of the Quorum throughout the Commonwealth ; and on 
October 30, 1776, was chosen a member of the Board of War, 
though he does not appear to have taken his seat in that body. 
On May 29, 1777, he was elected a member of the Council, 
an office which he held for two years ; and on July 1, 1779, he 
was appointed Judge of Probate for Middlesex County, and 
continued as such until his death, which took place at Groton, 
on November 17, 1804. Dr. Prescott took an active part in 
suppressing Shays's Rebellion, an insurrection which had 
many supporters in his neighborhood. He was one of the 
original Trustees of Groton Academy, and the first President 
of the Board ; and he was also a Fellow of the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences. 

On October 19, 1756, Dr. Prescott was married to Lydia, 
daughter of David and Abigail (Jennison) Baldwin, of Sud- 
bury ; and they had eight children. His wife died on Septem- 
ber 27, 1798. His dwelling was situated in the southerly 
part of the village, near the fork of the roads, close to the 
William Prescott monument. 

Ebenezer Champney was a son of Solomon and Abigail 
( I Macsparran) Champney, and born at Cambridge, on 

April 3, 1744. He was a descendant of Richard, who came 
from Lancashire in England during the early days of the Col- 
ony, and settled at Cambridge. Ebenezer graduated at Har- 
vard College in the Class of 1762. At first his intention was 
to enter the ministry, and to that end he began to study under 
the direction of the Reverend Caleb Trowbridge, of Groton, 
whose daughter he subsequently married. Soon afterward 



20 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

he left his chosen profession in order to take up the study 
of law in the office of the Honorable Samuel Livermore, of 
Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and in the year 1768 he was 
admitted to the bar of that State. He then opened an office 
at New Ipswich, where he began to practise his profession. 
In the spring of 1783 he came back to Groton, where he 
remained until 1789, when he again returned to New Ips- 
wich ; and in February, 1793, he was appointed Judge of 
Probate for Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, which 
office he continued to hold until the time of his death in the 
early autumn of 18 10. 

According to the town-records, Mr. Champney was mar- 
ried, on October 9, 1764, to Abigail, daughter of the Rev- 
erend Caleb and Hannah (Walter) Trowbridge, of Groton ; 
and they had seven children, of whom three died in infancy. 
By this marriage he became connected with the distinguished 
families of the Cottons and the Mathers. His wife was born on 
November 30, 1740, and died on October 23, 1775. In No- 
vember, 1778, he was married, secondly, to Abigail, daughter 
of Samuel Parker, who had gone from Groton to New Ipswich 
as early as the year 1760; and by this union there were four 
children. According to the History of New Ipswich (page 
419), the second wife was born in 1762, and died in 1790. 
In March, 1796, he was married, thirdly, to Susan Wyman, 
who died in the following September. Hannah, a daughter 
by the first wife, on February 2, 1792, married the Honorable 
James Prescott, Jr., of Groton, whose biographical sketch 
appears later in this Number. 

During the excitement of Shays's Rebellion in the year 
1786, owing to some spite which the insurgents had against 
Judge Champney, at that time a resident of Groton, an 
attempt was made to burn his office. Combustibles ready 
for use were found concealed under the building ; but for- 
tunately the plot was discovered in time to defeat its 
object. The office stood on the south side of the house, and 
was afterward used as an office by Timothy Bigelow, Samuel 
Dana, and Luther Lawrence, and still later by Dr. Amos 
Bancroft. Subsequently it was moved across the street, and 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 21 

placed in a corner of Dr. Amos B. Bancroft's garden, a short 
distance north of the site of the Town House ; after which 
it was again moved to the rear of his dwelling, and still later 
to the neighborhood of the railroad station, where now it is 
occupied by a family. 

Judge Champney had a large practice, and exercised a 
wide influence in the community. During the earlier years 
of his professional life, while living at New Ipswich, he was 
the only lawyer between Groton and Keene. He died on 
September 10, 1810, at the age of 66 years, 5 months, and 
7 days. 

The following inscription is found on the east side of 
Francis Champney's monument, in the Old Burying-Ground 
at Groton : — 

HON. EBENEZER CHAMPNEY ESQ. 
FATHER OF FRANCIS CHAMPNEY, 

DIED Sept. 10, 1S10. JE. 67 Ys. 
HE RECEIVED THE HONERS OF 

HARVARD UNIVERSITY 1762, 

ADMITTED TO THE BAR 1768. 

APPOINTED JUDGE OF PROBATE 1793, 

IN WHICH OFFICE HE DIED. 

UNIVERSALLY RESPECTED & LAMENTED. 

James Sullivan was a son of John and Margery (Brown) 
Sullivan, and born at Berwick, Maine, on April 22, 1744. He 
received such an education as then could be acquired in a 
country village, and he began the study of law in the office 
of his brother John, at that time a resident of Durham, 
New Hampshire, who afterward became a distinguished Gen- 
eral of Revolutionary fame. 

On February 22, 1768, he was married to Hetty, daughter 
of William and Avis (Adams) Odiorne, of Durham ; and by 
this marriage there were six sons and three daughters. His 
wife was born on June 26, 1748, and died on January 26, 
1786. 

After living for a short period at Georgetown, Maine, he 
removed soon after his marriage to Biddeford, on the Saco 
River, where he remained nearly ten years. He was a mem- 



22 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

ber of the three Provincial Congresses, from Biddeford, during 
1 774 and 1775, and a member of the General Court, from the 
same town, during 1775 and 1776. On March 20, 1776, he 
was appointed a Judge of the Superior Court of Judicature, 
which position he held for six years. With the hope of being 
able, during the intervals of his judicial duties, to be more 
with his family if living in a central position, and in the be- 
lief that during his enforced absence from home they would 
be in greater security further from the seacoast, Judge Sul- 
livan, in February, 1778, sold his dwelling-house at Biddeford, 
and took up his abode in Groton. He bought a farm on the 
present Lowell Road, about half a mile east of the First 
Parish Meeting-house. "It was pleasantly situated," says his 
biographer, the late Thomas Coffin Amory, Esq., "and the 
house, which still remains, stands on an elevation command- 
ing the view of a most agreeable variety of fertile fields and 
sunny slopes." By his change of residence, the towns of 
Biddeford and Pepperrellborough (now Saco) were not pre- 
vented from sending him again, in the spring of 1778, as a 
Representative to the General Court. On August 16, 1779, 
he was chosen a delegate from Groton to represent the town 
in the Convention for forming the Constitution of Massa- 
chusetts, which met on September 1 of that year ; and on 
February 28, 1782, was chosen, by a joint convention of both 
branches of the General Court, in place of Sam Adams, a 
delegate to the Continental Congress, then in session at 
Philadelphia, and his credentials were presented to that body 
on May 20. On June 1 1, 1787, he was elected by the Legis- 
lature a member of the Executive Council to fill a vacancy 
caused by the declination of Joseph Bradley Varnum, Esq., 
of Dracut, who had been previously chosen on June 1, 1787; 
and on May 29, 1788, he was appointed Judge of Probate for 
Suffolk County. On February 12, 1790, he was chosen 
Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, which office he held 
during seventeen years. He was the first President of the 
Massachusetts Historical Society, and occupied the position 
during fifteen years. In the autumn of 1804 he was chosen 
one of the Presidential Electors at large ; and when the 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 2$ 

Electoral College met in December, the members threw a 
unanimous vote for Thomas Jefferson as President. On April 
6, 1807, he was elected Governor of the Commonwealth, and 
served in that capacity for nearly two terms. He entered 
upon the duties of the office on May 27 following, and died in 
Boston, on December 10, 1808, while Governor. 

John Bulkley was the first native of the town, so far as I 
can learn, who studied law as a profession. He was a son 
of Colonel John and Mary (Underwood) Bulkley, of Groton, 
and a descendant of the Reverend Peter Bulkley, of Con- 
cord, and he graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1769. His uncle, Joseph Underwood, was a graduate in the 
Class of 1735, anQl perhaps prompted the nephew to take a 
collegiate course. His father was a prominent man in the 
neighborhood, and during the French and Indian War gained 
a colonelcy in the public service. The son studied his profes- 
sion, in part at least, at Boston ; and I have seen a fragment 
of a manuscript diary kept by him during that period, from 
which it appears that he was a gay young man, somewhat 
given to dissipation. He was born at Groton, on June 22, 
1749, and died on December 14, 1774. See "The Centennial 
Record" (Groton), February 22, 1876, for extracts from the 
diary just alluded to, where it is incorrectly said that the 
writer was unknown. 

I have also seen a note-book kept by him, which contained 
a list of " Actions before CoP Prescott." The first entry is 
" Abel Keemp vs Eleazor Green Mon : 4 th November 1771 "; 
and the last one in the list is dated July 25, 1774. At the 
end of the book is a list of " Executions returnable to Jus : 
Prescott 60 clays from Jan? 14 1772," of which the last one is 
dated October 30, 1774. The names of Jonas Cutler and 
Jonathan Clark Lewis, who were traders in Groton at that 
period, appear often in the lists ; and presumably they were 
suing their customers for the amount of their bills. I am 
inclined to think that, while keeping this book, Bulkley was 
acting in some official capacity, perhaps under the appoint- 
ment of his townsman Judge James Prescott. 



24 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

The following inscription is found, line for line, on his 
tombstone : — 

[Cherub's Head."] 

Col. John Bulklin , 

whose remains are here entomb'd, 

departed this Life Dec! y e 3? A). 1772. JE. 69. 

much lamented by those who knew him. 
He left a sorrowful widow, four Daughters & 
one son, named John by whom this family 
tomb was built ; who also departed this Life Dec! y e 
14'!' tD 1774. ^E 26. & whose remains are here 
deposited. 
He was educated at Harvard College and took the 
degree of A.B. & A.M. In the years 1769 and 1772. A good 
natural genius improv'd by a liberel Education he employ'd 
in the study of Law but had only practiced as an attorney 
a sufficient time to raise in his friends the most (sanguine) hopes 
of whatever great or good could reasonably be expected from an 
honest & benevolent heart, influenced by a good understanding 
and a prudent disposition, before a period was put to his Action, 
and designs ; & his numerous Acquaintance were call'd to lament 
the death of a dutiful son — a loving brother — a faithful friend — a 
kind neighbour — a good citizen — an honest man. 
Amicus pat rice, generis humani Amicus. 



Thomas Colman succeeded Mr. Bulkley as an attorney, 
though but little is known of his professional life in Groton. 
He was the third son of Deacon Benjamin and Ann (Brown) 
Colman, and born at Byfield, a village of Newbury, on March 
8, 175 1. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1770, and without doubt knew Bulkley as a fellow-collegian 
at Cambridge. It is uncertain how long he practised in this 
town, but probably until about the time of his death. He 
was drowned at Newbury bar, on October 28, 1781. 

The following extract from a Memoir of Samuel Dana, writ- 
ten by the Honorable Charles Humphrey Atherton, and 
printed in the third volume of the " Collections of the New- 
Hampshire Historical Society" (Concord, 1832), contains 
some references to both these young lawyers : — 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 25 

We are more the creatures of accident than we generally sup- 
pose, or are willing to allow. Now it happened that just before his 
[Mr. Dana's] relinquishment of the pastoral office, he was ap- 
pointed executor of the will of John Bulkley, Esq., an Attorney of 
law in Groton. This brought him in contact with a law library, 
which for convenience he had removed to his own house. To this 
occurrence may be traced his future success and distinction in life. 
In searching these law books, he spent many of his leisure hours, 
and either discovered or formed his taste for the investigation of 
legal subjects. One more lucky occurrence only was wanting 
which should give him some knowledge of office business, in order 
to fix Mr. Dana a candidate for the bar. For this, he did not long 
wait and it was probably of his own procuring. Thomas Coleman, 
Esq., who in 1779 succeeded Mr. Bulkley as an attorney in Groton, 
had his residence and office in the house of Mr. Dana, and under 
these favourable circumstances, he acquired some knowledge of the 
practice of law. Thus did Mr. Dana pick up his qualifications as a 
lawyer, as he had those of a clergyman, with great ease and little 
cost (pages 12, 13). 

In this list of the Lawyers of Groton is included, as an ex- 
ceptional case, the name of Samuel Dana, who was for many 
years the minister of the town. Before the troubles had 
arisen between him and his parish, he had clone some business 
of a legal character ; and, furthermore, at that period an edu- 
cated man was liable to act in any professional capacity. In 
the Memoir, by Mr. Atherton, from which an extract has just 
been given, there is a reference to the way in which he 
became interested in the study of law. 

Samuel Dana was a son of William and Mary (Green) 
Dana, and born in that part of Cambridge which is now 
Brighton, on January 14, 1738-9. He entered Harvard Col- 
lege at the early age of twelve years, which shows the natural 
aptitude of his mind to receive instruction, and graduated in 
the Class of 1755, of which President John Adams was a 
member. He fitted himself for the duties of a pastor by the 
only means then available, which was to study theological 
works under the advice of neighboring ministers. In fact 



26 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

the only course open to any professional scholar at that 
period was to follow a course of study under the guidance of 
an experienced teacher, as there were then no professional 
schools in the land. On June 3, 1761, Mr. Dana was settled 
as the minister of Groton ; and on May 6, 1762, he was married 
to Anna, daughter of Captain Caleb and Abigail (Bowen) 
Kenrick, of Newton. His pastorate here appears to have 
been harmonious until the political troubles of the Revolu- 
tion began to crop out, when a sermon preached by him in 
the early spring of 1775 gave great offence to the parish. His 
sympathies were with the Crown, while those of the people 
were equally strong on the other side; and the excitement 
over the matter ran so high that he was compelled to give up 
his charge. After his dismissal from the church he remained 
at Groton during some years, preaching for a short. time to a 
Presbyterian Society, then recently organized ; and later he 
removed to Amherst, New Hampshire, where he resumed the 
study of law in the office of Joshua Atherton, Esq., an at- 
torney of that town. In the autumn of 1781 he was admitted 
to practise in the Court of Common Pleas of Hillsborough 
County. He was a delegate chosen by the town of Amherst 
to the convention for the formation of a plan of government, 
which resulted in the State Constitution of 1783 ; and im- 
mediately after its adoption by the people he was commis- 
sioned as one of the Judges of the Inferior Court of Common 
Pleas, but declined the appointment. In the year 1785 he 
was appointed Register of Probate for Hillsborough County, 
and held the office until January 9, 1789, when he accepted 
the position of Judge of Probate, which he afterward resigned 
on December 21, 1792. In this office he was followed by the 
Honorable Ebenezer Champney, of New Ipswich, who had 
previously been a lawyer at Groton, and who has already been 
mentioned in this Number. In 1793 he was chosen to the 
State Senate to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of 
Mr. Atherton, his former preceptor. 

Judge Dana died at Amherst, on April 2, 1798, leaving a 
large family of children and grandchildren, and was buried on 
April 4, with Masonic rites, when a funeral oration was de- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 2J 

livered before the Benevolent Lodge of Free and Accepted 
Masons, by the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton. 

Benjamin Champney was the eldest child of Ebenezer and 
Abigail (Trowbridge) Champney, and born at Groton, on 
August 20, 1764. His early life was spent on his father's 
farm in the work that usually falls to the lot of a country boy. 
His education was received at the common schools of that 
day, with some occasional instruction from his father, under 
whom he prepared himself for the legal profession. He was 
called to the Middlesex bar; and in the year 1786 he opened 
an office in connection with his father at Groton, where he 
remained until 1791, when he removed to New Ipswich, and 
joined his father, who had two years previously taken up his 
residence in that town. 

In the year 1792 Mr. Champney was married to Mercy 
Parker, who died in April, 1795, having borne him three chil- 
dren ; and, secondly, in October, 1809, to Rebecca Brooks, who 
became the mother of seven children. Perhaps his first wife 
and his stepmother Abigail Parker were sisters, — daughters of 
Samuel and Abiael Parker, of Groton. For twenty years he 
was the postmaster of New Ipswich, and for a long time one 
of the selectmen; and he died in that town on May 12, 1827, 
at the age of 62 years, 8 months, and 23 days. 

James Prescott, Jr., was the youngest son of the Hono- 
rable James and Susanna (Lawrence) Prescott, and born at 
Groton, on April 19, 1766. He was educated at Harvard 
College, where he graduated in the Class of 1788. He 
studied law, and began the practice of his profession in the 
adjoining town of Westford, where he remained about ten 
years, when he returned to Groton. On February 2, 1792, 
he was married to Hannah, daughter of the Honorable 
Ebenezer and Hannah (Trowbridge) Champney, of New Ips- 
wich. She was born on September 23, 1768, and died on 
January 2, 1836; and from the year 1783 to 1789 her father 
was a lawyer of Groton. Mr. Prescott was appointed, on 
June 3, 1805, Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, 
which office he filled for six years. By an Act passed on 



28 THE LAWYERS OF GROTQN. 

June 21, 1 8 1 1, the Court of Common Pleas became the Cir- 
cuit Court of Common Pleas ; and for political reasons Judge 
Prescott was not re-nominated for the position. On February 
I, 1805, he was appointed to the office of Judge of Probate, 
made vacant by the death of his uncle, Dr. Oliver Prescott, 
on November 17, 1804. For six years Judge James Prescott 
was acting as Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas 
and at the same time as Judge of Probate, — a conjunction of 
offices which now would be considered incompatible with the 
best interests of the public. For forty-two years in succes- 
sion the Probate Judgeship of Middlesex County was held by 
him and his uncle. 

Judge Prescott died at his residence in Groton, on October 
14, 1829. His dwelling-house was situated on the east side of 
the Great Road, near the end of High Street, and before his 
ownership had belonged to Benjamin Bancroft, by whom it 
was probably built as far back as the Revolutionary period. 

Judge Prescott was an excellent classical scholar and well 
versed in law, but unfortunately he had a harsh temper, which 
rendered him unpopular, and was in a large measure the cause 
of many of his troubles and misfortunes. On February 1, 
1821, he was impeached by the House of Representatives for 
misconduct and maladministration in his office as Judge of 
Probate; and on April 18, the Senate met as a Court of Im- 
peachment, and tried him on fifteen articles, of which he was 
found guilty as to Articles III. and XII. By the casting vote 
of the President of the Senate there was a tie as to Article II. 

For the convenience of a few persons interested in such 
matters, I herewith give a bibliographical account of the 
trial : — 

In the Senate, February 9, 1821, it was ordered that the 
Clerk cause to be printed fifty copies of the articles of impeach- 
ment preferred by the House of Representatives, " together 
with the respondent's answer, when it shall be made — and the 
rules adopted by the Court of impeachment to be observed 
on the trial." (Manuscript Journal of the Senate, XLI. 225.) 
These were to be delivered, one copy each to the members 
of the Court, one copy to each manager appointed by the 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 29 

House, and three copies to the respondent or his counsel, and 
the remainder to be kept by the Clerk to await further orders. 
The copy in the possession of the Massachusetts Historical 
Society bears the autograph of Josiah Ouincy, the Speaker of 
the House, and has the following title : — 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Court of Impeachment for the 
Trial of James Prescott, Esquire, Judge of Probate, &c. for the 
County of Middlesex, on Articles of Impeachment, presented 
against him, by the Representatives of the People of Massachu- 
setts, for Misconduct and Mal-administration in Office. Boston : 
Russell and Gardner, Printers. 182 1. ato. pp. 3^. 

According to the " Boston Daily Advertiser," April 16, a 
day before the opening of the Court of Impeachment by ad- 
journment: " The Judge filed his answer to the charges about 
ten days since, and copies of it are printed for the use of the 
members of the Court." This answer signed by him became 
a part of the quarto pamphlet (pages 14-32), and was also 
printed separately with a title as follows:- — 

Answers to the Articles of Impeachment against the Judge of 
Probate for the County of Middlesex. Boston : Printed by Ezra 
Lincoln. 1821. 8vo. pp. 32. 

After the trial a full report was published with the title 
given below : — 

Report of the Trial by Impeachment of James Prescott, Esquire, 
Judge of Probate of Wills, &c. for the County of Middlesex, for 
Misconduct and Maladministration in office, before the Senate of 
Massachusetts, in the year 1821. With an Appendix, containing an 
account of former impeachments in the same State. By Octavius 
Pickering and William Howard Gardiner, of the Suffolk Bar. Bos- 
ton : Published at the Office of the Daily Advertiser. 182 1. 8vo. 
pp. 225 (1). 

On April 28 it was ordered by the Senate that copies of 
this Trial be purchased by the Clerk and furnished to the 
members. At the same time it was ordered by the House 
that the Clerk procure for each member a copy, " provided 



30 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

any report thereof shall be speedily published which in the 
opinion of the speaker of this House shall appear to be faith- 
ful and correct and charged at a reasonable price." In the 
" Boston Daily Advertiser," April 30, a statement to the same 
effect is made ; and it would seem from this that the Ad- 
vertiser report was procured for the members of the House 
and Senate. The following extracts from the Advertiser of 
April 20 and 23, respectively, relate to this publication : — 

This Court yesterday proceeded in the important trial now pend- 
ing before them. . . . We have diligently attended the course of 
this important trial, for the purpose of obtaining as accurate a re- 
port of it as possible, for publication. — In this difficult undertaking 
we have the assistance of two learned friends, who will make every 
exertion to render the report as perfect as possible. — We had in- 
tended to publish it in the Daily Advertiser, but it would not be 
proper to publish any report of the evidence while the trial is pend- 
ing, and it is likely to extend to too great length to admit of its 
being published in the paper, after the trial is finished. We are 
therefore driven to the necessity of publishing it only in a pamph- 
let. This will be issued from the press as soon as possible after 
the trial is closed. [April 20.] 

It will be recollected that we some time since announced an in- 
tention to publish a regular report of this trial in our paper. In 
pursuance of this intention, we made every provision in our power 
for obtaining a correct report. But on more full consideration, and 
after having taken notes of the first day's proceedings, we came to 
the conviction that it would be totally impracticable. [April 23.] 

Timothy Bigelow was the eldest son of Colonel Timothy 
and Anna (Andrews) Bigelow, and born at Worcester, on 
April 30, 1767. He was fitted for Harvard College under the 
tuition of Benjamin Lincoln and of the celebrated Samuel 
Dexter, then a law-student at Worcester. He graduated with 
high rank at Cambridge in the Class of 1786, and entered 
at once upon the study of his profession in the office of Levi 
Lincoln, the elder. Admitted to the bar in the year 1789, 
he began the practice of law at Groton, living at that time 
in the dwelling then occupied by Converse Richardson, and 
used as a public house, where he also had his office. The 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 3 I 

dwelling was situated on the south side of what is now Elm 
Street, near the corner of Pleasant Street, though it was 
moved away in the autumn of i860, to a lot near the head of 
the old Jenkins road, discontinued on April 6, 1885. It is 
said that he sat in his office six weeks without taking a fee, 
and then received a pistareen. On September 3, 1 79 1 , he 
was married to Lucy, daughter of Dr. Oliver and Lydia (Bald- 
win) Prescott, who was born on March 13, 1 771 . After his 
marriage he removed to the house standing, until the summer 
of 1875, between Governor Boutwell's dwelling and Mrs. 
Graves's. An account of this house is given in the first vol- 
ume of the Historical Series (No. XVI. pages 1-9), under the 
heading " An Old House, and Some of its Occupants." 

Mr. Bigelow soon acquired a wide reputation and a large 
practice, by no means confined to Middlesex County. Many 
young men came to Groton in order to study law in his 
office, and not a few of them afterward became eminent in 
their profession. At the same period Samuel Dana, Jr., 
was another noted lawyer of Groton, whose sketch follows 
the present one. These two men became the leaders of the 
Middlesex bar, and they also tried many cases in Essex, 
Worcester, and Suffolk Counties, as well as in New Hamp- 
shire. They were retained in most of the important cases 
in this neighborhood, and generally on opposite sides. They 
were both military men, and each one commanded a militia 
company made up of his own political party. Mr. Bigelow 
was a prominent Federalist, and the captain of the South 
Company; while Mr. Dana was equally prominent as a 
Democrat, and the captain of the North Company. They 
had offices in the same building, in fact on opposite sides 
of the same entry, and, in politics as well as at the bar, 
they were usually pitted against each other, yet in social 
life they were the best of friends. 

Mr. Bigelow took an active part in politics, and for many 
years was a member of the Massachusetts House of Repre- 
sentatives, chosen first by the town of Groton, and afterward 
by the town of Medford, where he was then living. During 
thirteen years he represented Groton in the House, and 



32 I HE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

during twelve years he represented Medford in the same 
body ; and he was the Speaker for thirteen years, the 
longest term of service in that capacity ever held by one 
person. He was filling this position at the time when the 
Act was passed, on June 19, 18 19, separating the District 
of Maine from the State of Massachusetts, and consequently 
the last Speaker of the united Legislatures of the District 
and the Commonwealth. He was a delegate to that famous 
political assembly in 18 14, known as the Hartford Conven- 
tion, and also a member of the Executive Council in the 
year 1820. He was one of the founders of Groton Academy, 
and an original member of the Board of Trustees. 

Amid the engrossing duties of his profession Mr. Bigelow 
found time for occasional literary work. While living at 
Groton he delivered the Oration before the Phi Beta Kappa 
Society at Cambridge, July 21, 1796; a Funeral Oration on 
Samuel Dana, — at one time minister of Groton and after- 
ward a lawyer, — before the Benevolent Lodge of Free and 
Accepted Masons, at Amherst, New Hampshire, April 4, 
1798; and a Eulogy on Washington before the Columbian 
Lodge of Masons, at Boston, February 11, 1800, — which 
addresses have been printed. In the year 1806 he removed 
to Medford, where he died on May 18, 1821, at the age of 
fifty-four years. See the " Columbian Centinel," May 19, 
1 82 1, for a tribute to his memory, written by the editor, 
Major Benjamin Russell, a friend of forty years' standing. 
The late Reverend Andrew Bigelow, D.D., and the late 
Honorable John Prescott Bigelow, Secretary of the Com- 
monwealth, were his sons. 

Among the young men who studied law in Mr. Bigelow's 
office were the following : — 

John Harris, Judge of the Supreme Court of New Hamp- 
shire ; Thomas Rice, of Winslow, Maine, Member of Congress ; 
John Locke, of Ashby, Member of Congress ; Joseph Locke, 
Judge of the Police Court of Lowell for thirteen years ; John 
Leighton Tuttle, of Concord; Asahel Stearns, University 
Professor of Law in the Harvard Law School; John Varnum, 
of Haverhill, Member of Congress; Loammi Baldwin, who 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 33 

afterward became a distinguished civil engineer ; John Park 
Little, of Gorham, Maine ; Tyler Bigelovv, of Watertown ; 
Luther Lawrence, of Groton, and afterward of Lowell, where 
he died while Mayor of the city, April 17, 1839; Nathaniel 
Shattuck, of Amherst, New Hampshire ; John Stuart, of 
Newburyport ; Augustus Peabody, of Boston ; and Abraham 
Moore, of Groton. 

Samuel Dana was the second son of the Reverend Samuel 
and Anna (Kenrick) Dana, and born at Groton, on June 26, 
1767. He studied law in the office of the Honorable John 
Lowell, Judge of the United States District Court, and 
about the year 1789 he began the practice of the profession 
in his native town. On December 5, 1795, he was married 
to Rebecca, daughter of Charles and Rebecca (Minot) 
Barrett, of New Ipswich, New Hampshire ; and they had a 
family of eight children. 

Mr. Dana soon took a high position in the community, and 
exerted a wide influence in the neighborhood. He had a 
large and successful practice at the bar, and many young 
men came to Groton in order to study law under his tuition. 
In a "Memoir of the late Hon. Samuel Dana, by his son, 
James Dana" (Cambridge, 1877), it is said: — 

Mr. Dana's reputation attracted many students, to whom he 
was accustomed to give lectures on the law and its practice. Many 
of his pupils were leading men in their day. These gentlemen 
made quite an addition to the cultivated society of the town. No 
list of his students has been preserved ; but it is known that 
among them were the Hon. Willard Hall, Judge of the United 
States District Court in Delaware, recently deceased, and the late 
Hon. William Merchant Richardson, Chief Justice of the Supreme 
Court of New Hampshire. Mr. Richardson practised in Groton 
for some years, — part of the time as law partner with Mr. Dana, — 
and while residing in Groton was Representative in Congress for 
Middlesex (page 7). 

Among his other students were Abijah Bigelow, of Leo- 
minster, Member of Congress ; Luther Fitch, of Groton, ane 
afterward of Portland, Maine, where he was Judge of the Mu- 

5 



34 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

nicipal Court ; James Lewis, of Pepperell ; Samuel Emerson 
Smith, Justice of the Court of Common Pleas of Maine, and 
Governor of that State; and John Wright, of Groton and 
Lowell. 

Mr. Dana was among the early friends and benefactors of 
Groton Academy, and a member of the original Board of 
Trustees. He was the first postmaster of the town, and 
always one of the foremost in public enterprises. The post- 
office was established on September 29, 1800, but no mail 
was delivered at the office until the last week in November. 
Occasionally, when the Reverend Dr. Chaplin, the minister 
of the town, owing to illness, was unable to officiate in the 
pulpit, Mr. Dana would be asked to supply his place and 
read a sermon, which he did with great acceptance to the 
congregation. 

Mr. Dana was chosen a member of the General Court 
during the years 1803, 1 825-1 827 ; he was also a member 
of the State Senate during the years 1805-1812 and 1817, 
and President of that body during the years 1807, 181 1, and 
1812. On October 14, 181 1, he was appointed Chief Justice 
of the Circuit Court of Common Pleas, which position he 
held for nine years. He was a Member of Congress during 
1 8 14 and 181 5, and a Presidential Elector in 1820, when the 
Electoral College cast its vote on December 7 of that year, in 
favor of James Monroe for President. Together with Luther 
Lawrence, Esq., he represented the town in the Convention 
for altering the Constitution of Massachusetts, which met 
on November 15, 1820. On May 10, 1825, he was appointed 
by Lieutenant-Governor Morton one of the Commissioners, 
on the part of the Commonwealth, to run the line between 
Massachusetts and New Hampshire. 

Judge Dana died at Charlestown, on November 20, 1835, 
aged 68 years ; and his wife Rebecca, at Groton, on May 11, 
1834, aged 54 years. His younger sister Mehitable Bowen 
Dana was the wife of the Honorable Samuel Bell, Governor 
of New Hampshire, and the mother of the Honorable Samuel 
Dana Bell, Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of 
New Hampshire; of the Honorable James Bell, United States 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 35 

Senator from the same State ; and of the late Dr. Luther V 
Bell, of Somerville, Massachusetts. 

William Merchant Richardson was the eldest son of 
Captain Daniel and Sarah (Merchant) Richardson, and born 
at Pelham, New Hampshire, on January 4, 1774. He gradu- 
ated at Harvard College in the Class of 1797, and imme- 
diately afterward obtained a situation as Assistant Preceptor 
of Leicester Academy, which place, owing to ill health, he 
was obliged to give up at the end of a year. He then 
went home to his father's farm in Pelham, where he tarried 
until he regained his strength, and soon afterward accepted 
the preceptorship of Groton Academy, — a position that had 
already been held by two of his classmates, Asahel Stearns 
and Leonard Mellen, who subsequently became lawyers as 
well as himself. He entered upon his new duties as Pre- 
ceptor in 1799, and taught in the Academy during four 
years. 

On October 7, 1799, Mr. Richardson was married to Betsey, 
daughter of Jesse Smith, of Pelham ; and they had seven 
children, of whom six lived to grow up and were married. 

While still engaged in the active work of teaching, he 
began the study of his chosen profession in the office of 
Judge Samuel Dana, of Groton, and was admitted to the 
bar at the June term of the Middlesex Court in 1804. Just 
before this time he had given up his position as preceptor 
of the Academy ; and he now entered into a partnership 
with Judge Dana, and this relation continued as long as 
he remained at Groton. On July 4, 1801, he delivered an 
address, in commemoration of the Anniversary of American 
Independence, which was afterward "published at the re- 
quest of the Committee of Arrangement." In July, 1804, 
he was appointed postmaster of the town, which office he 
held until January, 1812. On November 5, 18 10, he was 
chosen a representative to Congress, and later, on November 
2, 1 81 2, again chosen, thus serving two terms in that body. 

In the year 18 14 he removed to Portsmouth, New Hamp- 
shire, and in 18 16 he became the Chief Justice of the 



36 THE LAWYERS OE GROTON. 

Superior Court of Judicature of that State, which office he 
continued to hold, with great credit to himself and with 
satisfaction to the public, until the clay of his death. With 
him began the first published reports of judicial decisions, 
and his opinions extend through the first nine volumes of 
New Hampshire Reports. As a judge he was noted for the 
quickness of his apprehension, his ready application of the 
principles of common law, and his strict integrity. It has 
been said that he did more for the jurisprudence of his na- 
tive State than was ever accomplished by any other judge. 
He had a fondness for poetry, and in early life often in- 
dulged in writing poems on various occasions. He also 
possessed a fine taste for music, and played on the bass- 
viol, and he used to sing with his family at the domestic 
fireside. In the year 1 819 he removed from Portsmouth to 
Chester in the same State, and while living there, in No- 
vember, 1 83 1, with others he organized the Chester Musical 
Society, which was duly incorporated by the Legislature. 
Dartmouth College conferred upon him the degree of LL.D. 
in 1827. 

Judge Richardson died at his farm in Chester, on March 15, 
1838, deeply lamented by a loving family and by a wide circle 
of personal and professional friends. A sermon was preached 
at his funeral, on March 26, by the Reverend Jonathan 
Clement, of Chester, and subsequently printed; and a Sketch 
of his Life, written by the Honorable Charles Henry Bell, 
then a very young man, was published during the year 
following his death. 

Caleb Butler was a son of Caleb and Rebekah (Frost) 
Butler, and born at Pelham, New Hampshire, on September 
13, 1776. He was the third son and the fifth child in a fam- 
ily of eleven children. In the year 1794 he attended the 
academy at Pelham, then kept by Daniel Hardy, where he re- 
mained less than a year; and afterward for a few weeks he 
went to another academy in a neighboring town. With the 
exception of his subsequent studies at home, which he pursued 
under the guidance of Preceptor Hardy, this was his sole prep- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 37 

aration for college. He passed a successful examination at 
Dartmouth, and joined the Freshman class of that institution, 
in February, 1797, during their second term. While at college 
he taught district schools in the winter time, — then a common 
practice among students. He graduated in the Class of 1800, 
with the highest honors, on which occasion he delivered a 
salutatory oration in Latin. During the succeeding year he 
remained at Hanover, teaching the Indian Charity School, 
which was then connected with the college. In February, 
1802, he became preceptor of Groton Academy, and continued 
as such until August, 18 10, when he gave it up for an inter- 
val of two years; in 1812, resuming his former position, he 
held it until 1815, making his term of service in all nearly 
twelve years. While preceptor in 1807 he was chosen a 
Trustee of the institution, and held the office till his resigna- 
tion in 1836, a period of twenty-nine years. Teaching was 
an occupation congenial to his tastes, and his success in the 
calling was distinguished. At the Academy Jubilee, July 12, 
1854, he was a conspicuous personage, and received special 
attention from his former scholars. 

On August 22, 1804, he was married to Clarissa, daughter 
of Parker and Dorcas (Brown) Varnum, of Dracut ; and they 
had a family of eight children, of whom Mrs. Francis Augustus 
Brooks, of Boston, is now the sole survivor. His wife was born 
at Dracut, on January 27, 1782, and died at Groton, on Sep- 
tember 5, 1862. 

While still teaching at the Academy he began the study of 
law in the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence at Groton, 
and was admitted to the bar of Middlesex County on March 
18, 1 8 14. His subsequent practice was more in drawing up 
legal papers and settling estates than in attendance at the 
courts. His charges were always moderate, and many a 
widow and orphan had reason to be grateful to him for ser- 
vices wholly unrequited. 

On March 7, 18 15, Mr. Butler was chosen town-clerk, 
which office he held for three years; and on March 3, 1823, 
he was again chosen, and continued in the position for ten 
years more. On July 1, 1826, he succeeded Major James 



38 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Lewis as postmaster of the town, and remained as such, to 
the entire satisfaction of the public, until January 15, 1839, 
when he was removed for political heresy. Before he was 
commissioned as postmaster himself, for eight years he had 
performed most of the duties of the office, during Major Lewis's 
term of service. Upon the change in the administration of 
the National Government, he was reinstated in the same office, 
on April 15, 1841. He continued to hold the position until 
December 21, 1846, when he was again removed for political 
reasons. Mr. Butler was a most obliging man, and his re- 
moval was received by the public with general regret. During 
his two terms he filled the office for more than eighteen 
years, — a longer period of time than has fallen to the lot of 
any other postmaster of the town. In 1825 he was appointed 
Surveyor, on the part of the Commonwealth, to establish the 
boundary line between Massachusetts and New Hampshire. 
On May 4, 1829, he was chosen a representative to the Gen- 
eral Court; but he declined the office, and William Livermore 
was sent in his place. On July 12, 1826, he was appointed 
Chairman of Commissioners of Highways for Middlesex 
County. The title of this board was soon afterward changed 
to County Commissioners, and he continued as Chairman for 
fifteen years. 

Mr. Butler died, on October 7, 1854, at Groton, where his 
name is now perpetuated by three schools kept in the High 
School building, known respectively as the Butler Grammar, 
the Butler Intermediate, and the Butler Primary. There is 
also a Caleb Butler Lodge of Free Masons at Ayer, formerly 
a part of Groton. 

Mr. Butler was the author of a " History of the Town of 
Groton, including Pepperell and Shirley" (Boston, 1848), and of 
several Masonic addresses and historical pamphlets. Under 
a Resolve of the Legislature, passed on March 1, 1830, he 
made a Map of Groton, which was published by the town, 
in the spring of 1832. He also wrote an account of the 
total eclipse of the sun, June 16, 1806, which appeared in "The 
Medical and Agricultural Register for the years 1806 and 
1807" (Boston), pages 122-125. He was a member of the 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 39 

New England Historic Genealogical Society, and contributed 
an account of his branch of the Butler family to the quarterly 
Register (II. 355, III. 73, 353), published under the auspices 
of that Society. A sketch of his life appears in the " Me- 
morial Biographies " (II. 266-279), from which some of the 
facts contained in this notice are gathered. 

Timothy Fuller was a son of the Reverend Timothy and 
Sarah (Williams) Fuller, and born at Chilmark, on July 11, 
1778. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1801, and studied law in the office of the Honorable Levi 
Lincoln, the elder, at Worcester. His parents had ten chil- 
dren, — five boys and five girls, — and all the sons became 
lawyers. On May 28, 1809, Timothy was married to Mar- 
garet, daughter of Peter and Elizabeth (Jones | Wyzer) Crane, 
of Canton ; and they had seven children. 

Mr. Fuller was admitted to the bar during the October 
term of the Court of Common Pleas, 1804, in Boston, where 
he at once opened an office in Court Street. With the ex- 
ception of one year, his name appears in the annual direc- 
tories from 1805 to 1833, where he is put down as a counsellor. 
Soon after his marriage he bought a dwelling-house in Cam- 
bridgeport, where his children were born and brought up. 
While a resident of Cambridge, he was chosen, on April 5, 
1813, a member of the State Senate, and re-chosen during the 
following three years. On November 4, 18 16, he was chosen, 
as the Democratic candidate, a member of Congress, and re- 
chosen during the following four terms, making a service of 
ten years in that capacity. After his retirement from Con- 
gress he was elected, on May 2, 1825, a member of the Massa- 
chusetts House of Representatives, of which body he became 
the Speaker for that year ; and he was again elected, on May 
7, 1827, and May n, 1831, for those two years a member of 
the House. He also served as one of the Executive Council 
for the civil year ending May, 1829. 

In June, 1833, Mr. Fuller removed from Cambridge to 
Groton, where he bought an estate of fifty acres. Attributing 
his own success in life largely to the habits of industry ac- 



40 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

quired by an early experience on a farm, he was desirous to 
subject his boys to the same hardening process. He was pre- 
viously familiar with the town, as his eldest child, Margaret, 
had been a pupil for two years in Miss Susan Prescott's 
School for Young Ladies, and he had then been impressed 
with the natural attractions of the place. In the Sketch 
of "Chaplain Fuller" (Boston, 1863), by his brother Richard 
Frederic Fuller, the author writes : — 

The new family residence was in Groton, Massachusetts, a pros- 
perous town of Middlesex County, distant some thirty miles from 
Boston, and at that time principally devoted to agriculture. The 
house and grounds had been fitted up with much care and expense 
by Samuel Dana, a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. The 
white mansion, situated upon a gradual eminence, looked compla- 
cently upon the blue Wachusett, Monadnock, and Peterborough 
Hills. It was quite attractive to childish eyes, its ample front 
bathed in the sunlight, seeming, on approach, to expand into a 
smile of welcome (page 20). 

Soon after the family's arrival at their new home, Margaret 
Fuller writes to the Reverend Dr. Frederic Henry Hedge, 
as appears in her Life, by Colonel Thomas Wentworth 
Higginson : — 

I highly enjoy being surrounded with new and beautiful natural 
objects. My eyes and my soul were so weary of Cambridge 
scenery, my heart would not give access to a summer feeling there. 
The evenings lately have been those of Paradise, and I have been 
very happy in them. The people here much more agreeable than 
in most country towns ; there is no vulgarity of manners, but little 
of feeling, and I hear no gossip (pages 43, 44). 

While a resident of Groton Mr. Fuller did not wholly re- 
tire from active business, for his clients still sought him out 
and led him occasionally into the courts. After a short ill- 
ness he died at his home, on October 1, 1835, and was buried 
in Mount Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge. Among my ear- 
liest recollections as a boy is attending his funeral in company 
with my father. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 4 1 

Mr. Fuller had two sons, who followed in his professional 
footsteps, — his eldest son Eugene and Richard Frederic, who 
both are noticed in this Number. 

For an account of the Fuller family, see " The New Eng- 
land Historical and Genealogical Register" (XIII. 351-363) 
for October, 1859. 

Luther Lawrence was the eldest child of Major Samuel 
and Susanna (Parker) Lawrence, and born at Groton, on 
September 28, 1778. His father had been an officer in the 
Revolutionary Army, but resigned his commission on Sep- 
tember 12, 1778, a short time before the birth of the son. 
Luther began to attend school "at Groton Academy in the 
year 1794, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1 801. Among his classmates were Tyler Bigelow, Thomas 
Bond, James Abbot Cummings, Timothy Fuller, Dr. Joseph 
Mansfield, Stephen Minot, and William Bant Sullivan, all 
either natives of Groton or at some time residents of the town. 
He began the study of law under the tuition of the Honorable 
Timothy Bigelow, whose sister he afterward married. After 
his admission to the bar in June, 1804, he opened an office in 
his native town, where he soon gained a large practice. On 
June 2, 1805, he was married to Lucy, daughter of Colonel 
Timothy and Anna (Andrews) Bigelow, of Worcester; and 
one son and four daughters were born to them, of whom Mrs. 
Anna Maria (Lawrence) Seaver, of Rutland, Vermont, is the 
last survivor. After his marriage he lived in the house at 
the corner of Common and Main Streets, just north of the 
site of the Baptist Meeting-house ; and here his eldest child, 
Mrs. Seaver, was born. When his preceptor and brother-in- 
law, Mr. Bigelow, removed from Groton to Medford in the 
year 1806, Mr. Lawrence took possession of his dwelling. It 
was situated on Main Street, nearly opposite to the site of the 
Town House, though it has since been moved away. He 
continued to live in the Bigelow house until November, 
181 1, when he removed to the one, then just built, immedi- 
ately south of the old house, and now owned by Mrs. Eliel 
Sh um way. 

6 



42 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

During twelve years, from 1812 to 1822, both inclusive, and 
in 1830, Mr. Lawrence represented the town of Groton in the 
lower branch of the Legislature; and in 1822 he was the 
Speaker of that body. On October 16, 1820, he was chosen 
a delegate to the Convention for altering the Constitution of 
Massachusetts. In 181 1 he was chosen a Trustee of Groton 
Academy, which position he held until the day of his death. 
While a resident of Groton he always took a deep interest 
in the affairs of the town, and on all occasions he was both 
willing and ready to serve his neighbors in a private or 
public capacity. While a law student he interested himself 
much in military matters, and joined the South Company, of 
which Mr. Bigelow was the Captain. At that time there 
were, beside the Groton Artillery Company, two other mili- 
tary companies in the town, known respectively as the North 
Company and the South Company, of which the former was 
made up of Democrats, and the latter of Federalists. The 
young men of the neighborhood, ambitious of political prefer- 
ment, were very sure to join one or the other of these com- 
mands. Mr. Lawrence succeeded Mr. Bigelow as the Captain 
of the company ; and I have been told by persons who remem- 
ber those times that he was an excellent officer and a strict 
disciplinarian. For some references to these companies, see 
the first volume of this Historical Series, No. VII. (page 8), 
and No. VIII. (pages 6 and 7). 

The town of Lowell was incorporated on March 1, 1826, 
and its rapid growth attracted a population not only from the 
neighborhood but from distant places. In the spring of 1 831 
Mr. Lawrence removed to the new town, where his brothers 
had large interests in the manufacturing companies, which 
were the cause of its prosperity. He soon acquired a wide and 
lucrative practice, in which Elisha Glidden, Esq., was asso- 
ciated with him as a law-partner. He was one of the original 
Directors of the Railroad Bank organized in the year 1831, 
and the first President of that institution, holding the office 
at the time of his death. On March 5, 1838, he was chosen 
Mayor of the city, and the next year re-chosen with but little 
opposition. On April 1, 1839, he entered upon the duties of 



THE LAWYERS. OF GROTON. 43 

his office for the second term ; but soon his career was sud- 
denly ended. While showing one of the buildings forming 
a part of the Middlesex Mills to his friend and kinsman, 
Tyler Bigelow, Esq., of Watertown, he was killed, on April 17, 
1839, by falling into a wheel-pit. His head struck against a 
cast-iron wheel, and death ensued in a few minutes. The 
news spread rapidly throughout the city, and carried sadness 
to every heart ; and a special session of the City Council was 
called the same evening, when appropriate action was taken 
on the melancholy event. The family declined a public fu- 
neral ; and the remains were buried in his native town. I 
distinctly remember that the funeral procession was met at 
the Common and followed to the Old Burying Ground by a 
large concourse of people, irrespective of age or sex, while 
the bells of the village tolled their solemn knell. 

The following announcement of his death is found in the 
" Daily Centinel and Gazette " (Boston), April 18, 1839: — 

MELANCHOLY EVENT. 

It is our painful duty, to announce the sudden death of the Hon. 
Luther Lawrence, Mayor of Lowell, in that city, yesterday fore- 
noon, about eleven o'clock. Having occasion to examine some 
operations of workmen, at the Middlesex Mills, and standing at 
the moment on verge of the wheel-pit, he made a false step and fell 
into the pit, about twenty feet down. The fall proved fatal. — He 
was taken up insensible, and died in about fifteen minutes. 

This melancholy event created a general gloom in Lowell, and 
produced much sensation in this city, yesterday afternoon. Mr. 
Lawrence was formerly Speaker of our House of Representatives, 
and was extensively known and appreciated throughout the State, 
as one of our most intelligent and valuable citizens. As Mayor of 
Lowell, for the present and past years, he was faithful and efficient, 
and his death is universally lamented. 

The Reverend Henry Adolph Miles preached a sermon on 
Mr. Lawrence's death, at the South Congregational Church 
in Lowell, on April 21, 1839, which was afterward printed. 
A sketch of Mr. Lawrence is given in the " Contributions of 



44 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

the Old Residents' Historical Association" (I. 1 39-141), 
under the heading of "The Mayors of Lowell." 

Benjamin Mark Farley was a son of Benjamin and Lucy 
(Fletcher) Farley, and born, on April 8, 1783, in that part 
of Hollis, New Hampshire, which was afterward set off to 
Brookline. He was fitted for college at New Ipswich Acad- 
emy, now known as Appleton Academy, and graduated at 
Harvard College in the Class of 1804. He then began the 
study of law in the office of the Honorable Abijah Bigelow, of 
Leominster. While living in that town, by an Act of the 
Legislature passed on February 27, 1807, hi s name was 
changed from Mark Farley to Benjamin Mark Farley. After 
his admission to the bar he opened an office in Hollis, where 
he resided, with the exception of three or four years, until 
1855, when he removed to Boston. Occupying a position of 
large influence among his fellow-townsmen, he never failed to 
use it for their interest and welfare. He was chosen a repre- 
sentative to the New Hampshire Legislature from the town of 
Hollis in 18 14, and with the exception of five years continued 
to hold the office until 1829. He served as a member of 
the School Committee for twenty-five years. In his profes- 
sion he stood at the head of the Hillsborough bar, and for 
several years was President of the Hillsborough County Bar. 
From 1833 to 1843 he was a Trustee of Groton Academy. 

In the spring of 1834 Mr. Farley removed from Hollis to 
Groton, where he occupied an office in connection with his 
brother George Frederick. He lived in the house, next south 
of the office, which he had built during the previous year. In 
the autumn of 1837 he returned to Hollis; and his son-in-law, 
the Reverend Dudley Phelps, who was then settled as a 
minister over the Union Congregational Church, and just 
married, took the same dwelling, and occupied it. It is now 
owned by Colonel Daniel Needham. 

In the year 1855 he left Hollis and went to Boston, where 
he resided with another son-in-law, George Bancroft, in Shaw- 
mut Avenue, though he did not engage in active practice, as 
he had acquired an ample competence from his profession. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 45 

He died, on September 16, 1865, at Lunenburg, where he had 
been passing the summer, and was buried, on September 20, 
at Hollis. A Funeral Discourse was preached on the occasion 
by the Reverend Pliny Butts Day, and afterward published, 

Mr. Farley was married, at Leominster, on September 26, 
1805, first, to Lucretia, daughter of the Reverend Francis 
and Sarah (Gibson) Gardner, of Leominster, who died on 
April 28, 1819, aged 35 years ; and at Pepperell, on Septem- 
ber 17, 1828, secondly, to Mrs. Lucretia (Bullard) Parker, 
daughter of the Reverend John and Elizabeth (Adams) Bul- 
lard, of Pepperell, and widow of Samuel Parker. The first 
wife was one of twin sisters, born on June 18, 1783, — the 
other twin being Lucinda, who died at Leominster, on April 
17, 1826. The second wife died at No. 32 Shawmut Avenue, 
Boston, on February 26, 1862, aged 79 years and 8 months. 

Samuel Farnsworth was the eldest child of Levi and 
Abigail (Harrington) Farnsworth, and born at Shirley, on 
April 16, 1783. He was attending school at Groton Academy 
in the year 1803, and studied law probably in the office of 
Judge Dana at Groton. He was admitted to the Middlesex 
bar in October, 18 17, and, according to " The Massachusetts 
Register and United States Calendar for the Year of our 
Lord 1 816," and the eight succeeding annual issues of the 
publication, he was an attorney at Groton, either of the Cir- 
cuit Court of Common Pleas or of the Supreme Judicial 
Court, during that period, although probably not a resident 
of the town for all those years. He afterward went to Tusca- 
loosa, Alabama, where he is said to have ended his days. 
Mr. Farnsworth was a descendant of Jonathan, the youngest 
married son of Matthias, who was an early settler of the 
town. 

Abraham Moore was a son of Dr. Abraham and Sarah 
(Johnson) Moore, and born at Bolton, on January 5, 1785. 
He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1806, and 
studied law under the tuition of the Honorable Timothy 
Bigelow, of Groton ; and soon after his admission to the bar, 



46 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

he established himself as a lawyer in the town. On July 4, 
1808, he delivered an address at Groton on the occasion of a 
celebration which took place under the auspices of the Fed- 
eralists. For an account of the affair, see Volume II. of this 
Historical Series (pages 384-386). On January 31, 18 12, he 
was appointed postmaster, and acted in that capacity until the 
summer of 18 15, when he removed to Boston. His office was 
situated near Hall's tavern, on the site of the north end of 
Gerrish's block, as it stood until recently ; and the post-office 
was kept in the same place. 

Mr. Moore was married about the year 1809 to a clever 
young actress from England, who was known professionally 
as Mrs. Woodham. John Bernard, an Englishman and the 
author of a book entitled " Retrospections of America, 1797- 
181 1 " (New York, 1887), in describing a trip to Canada in 
the year 18 10, says: — 

At Groton we made our first halt in order to pay a visit of a few 
hours to Mrs. [Mary] Moore (late Mrs. Woodham), who, with her 
new husband, a solicitor, had retired from all the cares and allure- 
ments of the world to this secluded village. Pleased as I was to 
see her happiness, I confess that it surprised me, considering that 
a few months before all her pleasure had seemed to centre in her 
profession (pages 345, 346). 

Mrs. Moore's maiden name was Mills, and Mr. Moore was 
her third husband. She had been married, first, to a Mr. 
Barnard, by whom she had a son ; and, secondly, to Mr. 
Woodham. The son's name was William, and he attended 
school at Groton Academy in 1809. I have heard it said that 
he became a scene-painter, and that he died many years ago. 
Mrs. Moore's mother before her marriage was Susanna Cun- 
ningham, and she also had had three husbands, named, respec- 
tively, Dalrymple, Mills, and Cunningham, — all Scotchmen. 
An interesting account of these various family ramifications 
is found in " The New-England Historical and Genealogical 
Register" (XXVI. 47) for January, 1872. 

Mr. and Mrs. Moore were blessed with three children, — a 
son born on May 7, 18 10, who died in early infancy (see 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 47 

" Groton Epitaphs," page 135) ; Mary Frances, who married, 
on November 23, 1829, John Cochran Park, Esq., in Boston, 
where she died, on February 8, 1852, aged 40 years, 7 months, 
and 27 days; and Susan Varnum, who married Granville 
Mears, and died in Boston, on November 15, 1883, aged 68 
years. All these children were born at Groton. 

I do not know the date of Mrs. Moore's death ; but Mr. 
Moore was married, on September 19, 18 19, in Boston, sec- 
ondly, to Eliza, daughter of Isaac and Eliza Durell, who died 
on January 19, 1858, aged 65 years. The husband also died in 
Boston four years previously, on January 30, 1854. 

During the last war with England Mr. Moore occupied the 
house built by Dr. Oliver Prescott, at the southerly end of 
Main Street. At that period it was one of those hospitable 
mansions where Lieutenant Chase used occasionally to march 
his recruits in order to refresh the inner man, as mentioned 
in the first volume of this Historical Series (No. VIII. page 6). 
Mr. Moore was a man of military tastes, fond of the good things 
of this life, who always took great pleasure in entertaining his 
friends. He afterward lived in the dwelling just south of the 
First Parish Meeting-house, which was bought in the summer 
of 1836 by the Trustees of Groton Academy. His style of 
living was beyond his means, and just before leaving the town 
he made a grand failure. His creditors levied upon the 
estate, and nothing was saved from the financial wreck. Mrs. 
Moore went back to the stage, and died soon afterward ; she 
is still remembered by a few persons who speak of her in 
terms of great kindness and respect. Colonel William War- 
land Clapp, in his " Record of the Boston Stage " (Boston, 
1853), says: — 

In 1816 two actresses of merit made their appearance. Mrs. 
Moore, formerly Mrs. Woodham, who has many descendants, highly 
respected in society, still living in this city, was an interesting 
actress, and her Lady Teazle was an admirable impersonation 
(page 145). 

Abraham Andrews was a son of Solomon and Sarah 
(Bradford) Andrews, — the eldest of nine children, — and was 



48 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

born at Hillsborough, New Hampshire, on December 14, 
1786. In the year 1802 or 1803 his father removed to the 
adjoining town of Windsor, where he died on March 29, 
1840; and his mother died at Warner in the same State, on 
November 16, 1856. The son pursued his preparatory studies, 
first, under the tuition of his maternal uncle, the Reverend 
Ephraim Putnam Bradford, of New Boston, New Hampshire, 
and later at Phillips Exeter Academy. He graduated at 
Dartmouth College in the Class of 181 1, which, at the com- 
pletion of their college course, contained fifty-five members, of 
whom ten were either natives of Groton or at some time 
in their lives residents of the town. Immediately afterward 
he began to read law in the office of the Honorable Clifton 
Claggett, of Amherst, New Hampshire, where he remained 
until the following October, when he engaged in teaching at 
Brighton, now a part of Boston, and continued in that calling 
till April, 18 1 3. He then resumed the study of law, entering 
the office of Aaron Flint, Esq., of Mount Vernon, New 
Hampshire, where he remained for several months, when he 
took charge of a public school in Charlestown, Massachusetts. 
Endowed with a natural aptitude for giving instruction, he 
met with remarkable success in his chosen profession, which 
from this time forward continued to be that of a teacher. 
During most of this period he was Head Master of the Bow- 
doin School for girls in Boston, where there were annually not 
less than five hundred scholars. In the spring of 1855, after 
a service of more than thirty years in connection with this 
school, he resigned the mastership, and bought a place in 
Groton, situated on Farmers' Row, near the western end of 
the Broad Meadow Road. Here he lived for ten years, 
respected and honored, when he removed to Charlestown, 
where he died on March 7, 1869. While a resident of Groton, 
he took an active interest in the schools of the town, and for 
seven years was a member of the School Committee. 

On April 30, 182 1, Mr. Andrews was married, first, to Eliza 
Rhoades, eldest child of Captain Benjamin and Hannah 
(Rhoades) Swift, of Charlestown, who was born on April 14, 
1797, and died on October 2, 1829; and, on November 14, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 49 

1830, secondly, to Caroline Swift (a sister of his first wife), 
who was horn on May 29, 1807, and died on April 20, 
1882. 

George Frederick Farley was a son of Benjamin and 
Lucy (Fletcher) Farley, of Brookline, New Hampshire, and 
born at Dunstable, Massachusetts, on April 5, 1793, while his 
mother was on a visit at her father's house. He fitted for 
college at Westford Academy, and graduated at Harvard 
College in the Class of 18 16. After leaving Cambridge he 
began the study of law with his brother Benjamin Mark 
Farley, at Brookline, New Hampshire, and later with the 
Honorable Luther Lawrence at Groton. He was admitted to 
the Middlesex bar in June, 1820, and soon afterward opened 
an office at New Ipswich, where he practised his profession 
until 1 83 1, when he removed to Groton. Here he remained 
till his death, though during the last few years of his life he 
had an office in Boston and Charlestown, but not simulta- 
neously, as well as one at home. He was a good lawyer, an 
acute logician, and an able man. See the second volume of 
this Historical Series (pages 325-328), for an account of Mr. 
Farley, where an estimate of his character is given by Governor 
Boutwell. 

Mr. Farley was married at Ashby, on November 25, 1823, 
to Lucy, daughter of John and Lucy (Hubbard) Rice. His 
wife was born in that town on March I, 1799, and died at 
Groton on September 1, 1854. On August 24, 1836, he was 
chosen a Trustee of Groton Academy, now known as Law- 
rence Academy, and on July 18, 1854, was elected President of 
the Board, which position he held until the time of his death. 
He died at Groton on November 8, 1855 ; and two days later 
the members of the Middlesex bar met in Lowell and passed 
resolutions, expressing their sympathy with the bereaved 
family and lamenting the loss to the legal profession caused 
by his decease. 

Mr. Farley was considered one of the most eminent and 
successful lawyers not only in the County, but in the Common- 
wealth, and yet to-day his career at the bar is little more than 



5<D I III. LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

a faint tradition or recollection. Among the students who 
read law in his office at Groton may be mentioned: John 
Parker Ballard (H. C. 1829), James Dana (H. C. 1830), 
Frederick Augustus Worcester (IT. C. 183 1 ), Eugene Fuller 
(H. C 1834), Giles Henry Whitney (H. C. 1837 , Edwin 
Coburn (Amh. C. 1841), John Quincy Adams Griffin, William 
Haughton Richards (Y. C. 1850), John Spaulding (Y. C. 
1846), and his son-in-law, Edward Albert Kelly. 

The late Honorable John Appleton, of Bangor, Maine, 
Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court in that State, 
studied law in the office of Mr. Farley, while he was living 
at New Ipswich. 

William Lawrence Chaplin was the youngest child of 
the Reverend Daniel and Susanna (Prescott) Chaplin, and 
born at Groton, on October 27, 1796. He began to attend 
school at Groton Academy in the year 1804, then under the 
preceptorship of Mr. Butler, and entered Harvard College in 
the autumn of 18 19. His name appears in the annual cata- 
logue of that institution for four successive years, but he 
did not graduate. He stood well in his class, and excelled 
particularly in Latin; and his leaving had no connection 
either with his rank or deportment. A " rebellion " broke 
out in the college during his Senior year, when thirty-four of 
his classmates were dismissed, but he was not in any way 
implicated. Mr. Chaplin studied law with Judge Dana, of 
Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in June, 1829, 
but he practised his profession for only two or three years. 
He had an office for a short time in his native town, but 
nowhere else. 

In the early days of the anti-slavery agitation, Mr. Chaplin 
was a prominent Abolitionist. On August 8, 1850, he was 
thrown into prison at Washington, D. C, and treated with 
great cruelty and indignity, for helping two run-away slaves 
to escape who belonged to Messrs. Toombs and Stephens, 
representatives in Congress from Georgia. He was subse- 
quently given up to the Maryland authorities, and then con- 
fined in the jail at Rockville, the shire-town of Montgomery 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 51 

County, where he received much kindness. It happened, for- 
tunately for him, that the sheriff of this county was a Christian 
gentleman, and the jailer a man of good feelings. He was 
finally released on very heavy bail, provided by his friends, 
and of course forfeited by him under their advice. A pam- 
phlet was printed soon afterward, giving a full history of the 
affair, entitled : The Case | of | William L. Chaplin ; | 
being | an Appeal | to all | Respecters of Law and Justice 

I against | the cruel and oppressive treatment to which, un- 
der color I of legal proceedings, he has been subjected, in the 

I District of Columbia and the State of | Maryland. || Boston : 
Published by the Chaplin Committee, 185 1. Octavo, pages 54. 
The following extract is taken from the pamphlet : — • 

Thus, after an imprisonment of six weeks at Washington, and of 
thirteen weeks more at Rockville, was Mr. Chaplin delivered out 
of the hands of the Philistines ; not, however, till his friends had 
paid for him the enormous ransom of $25,000 (page 49). 

On August 12, 185 1, he was married at Glen Haven, New 
York, to Theodosia, daughter of Deacon Elias and Betsey 
(Green) Gilbert, of Richmond, Ontario County, New York; 
and they had two children, — Harriet Lawrence, born on De- 
cember 5, 1852, and died on December 21, 1861 ; and Theo- 
dosia Gilbert, born on April 11, 1855, wno * s carried to the 
Reverend Frederick John Clegg Walton, now of Englewood, 
Illinois. Mrs. Chaplin died at Glen Haven, on April 17, 1855, 
soon after the birth of her second child ; and she is said to 
have been a woman lovely in character and noble in purpose. 
During Mr. Chaplin's imprisonment she never lost heart or 
hope, but bore up bravely under the cruel hardship. Her 
husband survived her sixteen years, and died at Cortland, 
Cortland County, New York, on April 28, 1871. In speaking 
of Mr. Chaplin, the Reverend John Todd, D.D., the colleague 
and successor of his father at Groton, writes : — 

He was the youngest son, — the staff of the old man's age. He 
relinquished all hopes and openings in his profession, — the law, — 
that he might comfort and support his aged parents on their way to 



52 I III, LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

the grave. Most dutifully did he perform every filial duty till he 
had seen his parents laid in the tomb. Dr. James P. Chaplin, of 
Cambridge, so successful in the treatment of the insane, was an 
older brother ; and his grandfather [great-uncle], Col. Prescott, 
was a commander at the battle of Bunker Hill (ibid., page 15). 

For other notices of Mr. Chaplin and his family, see Vol- 
ume I. of this Historical Series, No. XI. (pages 5, and 19, 20) ; 
and Volume II. No. XV. 



John Wright was a son of Nathan and Elizabeth (Trow- 
bridge) Wright, and born at Westford, on November 4, 1797. 
He was fitted for college at Phillips Academy, Andover, and 
graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1823. After leav- 
ing Cambridge he was the Preceptor of Westford Academy 
for two years, when he came to Groton and studied law in the 
office of Judge Samuel Dana. He was admitted to the bar in 
March, 1829, and began the practice of law at Groton, where 
he remained until the year 1833, when he gave up his pro- 
fession. He then removed to Worcester, and became en- 
gaged in manufacturing. While a resident of that town he 
was chosen, on November 11, 1839, a Representative to the 
General Court to serve for the political year 1840. In 1843 
he removed to Lowell in order to take the agency of the Suf- 
folk Mills, which he held until about a year before his death, 
when he resigned on account of ill health. He was a Di- 
rector of the Railroad Bank in that city, and of the Stony 
Brook Railroad Company; for many years a Trustee of West- 
ford Academy, and for several years the President of the 
Board of Trustees. 

Mr. Wright was married, on May 13, 1829, to Susan, 
daughter of Judge James, Jr., and Hannah (Champney) Pres- 
cott, of Groton. He died in Lowell, on April 18, 1869, and 
was buried in the Groton Cemetery. He left a widow and 
three children to mourn his loss, — William Prescott Wright, 
a graduate of Harvard College in the Class of 1853, ami two 
daughters. The two eldest children, Mary Jane and William 
Prescott, were born at Groton. A notice of the son ap- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 53 

pears later in this Number, among the natives of the town 
who have studied law and practised elsewhere. 

Bradford Russell was a son of Abner and Sarah (Hay- 
ward) Russell, and born at Weston, on November 17, 1796. 
He began his preparatory studies at Framingham Academy, 
and completed them under the Reverend Charles Stearns, of 
Lincoln. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1 818, and immediately afterward was engaged as an assistant 
teacher in Leicester Academy, where he remained for one 
term. In December, 1818, he entered the office of the 
Honorable James Prescott, Jr., of Groton, and for nearly three 
years read law under his instruction. He was admitted to 
the Middlesex bar in September, 1 82 1 , and at once established 
himself at Groton in the practice of his profession. His office 
then was in the northerly end of Mr. Dix's building, though 
subsequently for many years in the Brick Store. He died at 
Clinton, on July 8, 1864. 

Four of his classmates, Charles Octavius Emerson, Esq., 
the Reverend James Delap Farnsworth, Dr. Joshua Green, 
and the Reverend Charles Robinson, were at times residents 
of this town. The Reverend Edward Grenville Russell, a 
graduate of Harvard College in the Class of 1855, who died 
in Cambridge, on February 25, 1880, was a son. 

On February 21, 1828, Mr. Russell was married in Boston, 
first, to Mary Ann, eldest daughter of Captain Joshua Nash, 
who died at Groton, on January 7, 1846, aged 40 years and 
19 days; and, in West Boylston, on March 25, 1847, secondly, 
to Maria Prudence, daughter of Joshua Prouty of that town. 

See the second volume of this Historical Series (page 414), 
for a short notice of Mr. Russell. 

Asa Farnsworth Lawrence was the youngest child of Asa 
and Lydia (Farnsworth) Lawrence, and born at Groton, on 
February 7, 1800. He fitted for college at Groton Academy, 
and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1824. On 
August 18, 1824, he was appointed Preceptor of Groton 
Academy, and served as such during two years; and he then 



54 I III: LAWYERS I IP GROTi IN. 

entered the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of 
Groton, where he studied his profession, and was admitted 
to the bar in December, 1828. On July 11, 1837, ne was 
married to Sarah Jane, daughter of Dr. Amos and Sarah 
(Bass) Bancroft, of Groton ; and they had a family of five 
children, of whom one died in infancy. He began the practice 
of his profession at Pepperell ; while a resident of that town 
he was a member of the State Senate for the years 1841 and 
1844; and while a resident of Cambridge, he was a member 
of the House of Representatives for 1856. He continued to 
live at Pepperell until May, 1850, when he removed to Cam- 
bridge, where he remained till June, 1856, in which year he 
came back to his native town in order to take up a per- 
manent abode. On June 7, 184S, he was appointed Com- 
missioner of Insolvency for Middlesex County, a position 
which he held for seven years. 

During the latter part of his life Mr. Lawrence was not 
engaged in the active practice of his profession, but was 
always ready to give his neighbors the benefit of his wise 
counsels. No one was ever turned aside by him for the want 
of the customary fee, and he was accessible equally to the 
humblest and the highest. His death took place at Groton, 
on December 27, 1873, and his loss was mourned by a wide 
circle of friends. 

Benjamin James Prescott was a son of the Honorable 
James, Jr., and Hannah (Champney) Prescott, and born at 
Groton, December 12, 1804. He pursued his preparatory 
studies at Groton Academy, and graduated at Harvard 
College in the Class of 1824. He studied law under the 
tuition of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of Groton, and 
was admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1828. He 
practised his profession only a short time in his native town, 
where, owing to intemperate habits, his career was not very 
successful. His office was over Benjamin F. Lawrence's 
store. Soon afterward he went to Florida, and died there in 
September, 1838, unmarried. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 55 

James Dana was the youngest son of the Honorable 
Samuel and Rebecca (Barrett) Dana, and born at Charlestown, 
on November 8, 1811. At that time his father, a native of 
Groton, was living at Charlestown, but in the year 1 8 1 5 
returned to this town, where the son received his early 
education. He attended school at Groton Academy for seven 
years, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1830. 
He studied law first in the office of his father at Groton, and 
later in the office of George F. Farley, Esq., and was admitted 
to the bar in December, 1833. He practised for one or two 
years at Groton, in connection with his father, and then 
removed to Charlestown. 

An amusing account of the trial of a case, where he and his 
classmate, Thomas Hopkinson, a fellow law-student, acted as 
counsel for each other, is given on pages 262-267 of the 
second volume of this Historical Series. It is entitled " Two 
Law-Students and their First Case," and was written out by 
Mr. Dana, several years ago, at my request, after I had heard 
him relate the story. 

Air. Dana was married, on June 1, 1837, first, to Susan 
Harriet, daughter of Paul and Susan (Morrill) Moody, of 
Lowell, who died at Charlestown, on July 18, 1838, aged 22 
years, leaving an infant, Susan Moody, born on July 7; 
on August 4, 1 84 1, secondly, to Margaret Lance, daughter of 
Colonel Levi and Elizabeth (Cook | Wood) Tower, of New- 
port, Rhode Island, who died at Newport, on August 6, 1843; 
and, on June 12, 1850, thirdly, to Julia, daughter of William 
and Mary (Parks) Hurd, of Charlestown. 

Mr. Dana took much interest in the militia, and at different 
times held commissions of various grades in the service. 
According to the Massachusetts Register, in 1841 he was 
Colonel of the Fourth Regiment, First Brigade, Second 
Division, and during several subsequent years, Brigadier 
General in command of the Third Brigade. At the Jubilee of 
Lawrence Academy, on July 12, 1854, General Dana acted 
as Chief Marshal, and led the procession in its march from 
the village to the tent where the dinner was given. On 
December 14, 1857, he was chosen Mayor of the city of 



■56 THE LAWi ERS OF GROTON. 

Charlestown, for the municipal year 1858, and re-chosen at 
the two subsequent elections ; and his service for these three 
terms met with general approval. 

During: many years Mr. Dana was associated in professional 
business at Charlestown with Moses Gill Cobb, under the 
style of Dana and Cobb ; and their office was in Main Street. 
As Mr. Cobb's parents were residents of Groton, a notice of 
him appears later in this Number. About the year 1875 
Mr. Dana removed to Dorchester, where he died on June 4, 
1890. 

James Gerrisii was a son of George and Elizabeth Thomp- 
son (Furbush) Gerrish, and born at Lebanon, Maine, on May 
3, 1 8 1 3. His father was born in the same town on October 
19, 1775 ; and his mother also, on July 10, 1779. He studied 
his profession partly at South Berwick, Maine, and partly at 
Great Falls, New Hampshire; and in May, 1841, he entered 
the Harvard Law School, where he remained one year, when 
he was admitted to the bar in Lowell. In the Law School 
catalogue of that period his residence is put down as Somers- 
worth. fie began the practice of his profession in Lowell, 
but about the year 1848 he removed to Shirley Village, and 
opened an office at Groton Junction, then just starting as a 
small settlement. The cause of his removal was due to the 
state of his health, which was greatly improved by the change. 
He erected a building on Merchants' Row, where he had his 
office, which was one of the first buildings put up at the 
Junction, though a few years later it was destroyed by fire. 
He had a large law practice in the neighborhood, and on May 
1 J, 1871, was commissioned as Trial Justice for the First 
Northern Middlesex District Court. At one time he was 
associated in professional business with Salmon Whitney, when 
the style of the firm was Gerrish and Whitney. In politics he 
was a Democrat, and always prominent in the councils of 
his party ; and also an Odd Fellow of long standing, being 
a charter member of the Fredonian Lodge at Shirley Vil! 
Occasionally he yielded to the impulses of his poetic fancy; 
and a specimen of his verses, entitled "A Prayer for our 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. S7 

Union," may be found in the " Railroad Mercury " (Groton 
Junction), June 26, 1861. 

Mr. Gerrish was married, first, to Annah R. Foster, a 
native of Bristol, Maine, who died at Shirley, on March 5, 
1859, aged 37 years; and, on January 6, 1863, secondly, to 
Mrs. Sarah (Brooks) Powers, daughter of Benjamin and 
Betsey (Wallace) Brooks, of Townsend, and widow of Charles 
Powers of that town. 

His death took place at Shirley Village, on July 30, 
1890. 

John Spaulding is a son of Deacon John and Elinor (Dix) 
Spaulding, and was born at Townsend, on August 8, 18 17. 
He took his preparatory studies at Phillips Academy, An- 
dover, and in 1842 entered the Freshman class at Middlebury 
College, where he remained one year. He then joined the 
Sophomore class at Yale College, but, owing to ill health, was 
obliged to leave during the Senior year, before taking his 
Academic degree. Later he entered the Harvard Law School, 
where he graduated in the Class of 1850 ; and continuing 
his professional studies under the tuition of George F. Farley, 
Esq., of Groton, he was admitted to the bar in the year 185 1. 
Immediately afterward he opened an office at Groton in the 
building then known as Gerrish's Block, but which has since 
been moved away; and here he remained until 1859, when 
he went to Groton Junction, or South Groton, as it was some- 
times called, though now known as Ayer. On September 6, 
1872, he was appointed second special justice of the First 
District Court of Northern Middlesex, and he still holds a 
position on the bench of that Court. In 1882 he removed 
with his family from Ayer to Boston, where for many years 
previously he had had an office. 

Mr. Spaulding was married, on January 7, 1862, to Charlotte 
Augusta, daughter of Alpheus, Jr., and Mary Ann Hubbard 
(Townsend) Bigelow, of Weston, who died in Boston, on June 
24, 1889, aged 71 years, 6 months, and 8 days. The honorary 
degree of A. M. was conferred upon him by Yale College at 
the Commencement in 1874, and at the same time, by a vote 

8 



58 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

of the Corporation, he was transferred as an A. B. to the 
Class of 1846, of which he was formerly a member. 

George Sewall Boutwell is a son of Sewell and Re- 
becca (Marshall) Boutwell, and was born at Brookline, on Jan- 
uary 28, 1 818. His birthplace comes now within the grounds 
of the Country Club at Clyde Park. When he was two years 
old, his father's family removed to Lunenburg, the former home 
of his mother, where he was brought up on a farm. During 
the winter of 1834-35 ne taught the Pound Hill District school 
in Shirley ; and the old building is still standing, though now 
used as a shed or store-house. On March 5, 1835, he was 
placed as a clerk in a store at Groton, first, with Benjamin 
Perkins Dix, with whom he remained for nine months, and 
then with Henry Woods, whose partner he afterward be- 
came. On January 15, 1839, Mr. Wood was appointed post- 
master of the town, and at his death, which occurred two years 
later, — on January 12, 1841, — Mr. Boutwell followed him in 
the office; but he kept it only three months, as there had been 
in the mean time a change in the administration of the Na- 
tional Government. During the presidential canvass of 1840 
he entered politics as a supporter of Van Buren, and, on No- 
vember 8, 1841, he was first chosen a representative to the 
General Court for the session of 1842, and also for six 
subsequent terms, though not in consecutive years. In 
1844, 1846, and 1848 he was defeated as a candidate for 
Congress from the Third District, and in 1849 ^ e was tne 
Democratic nominee for Governor with no better success. 
He ran again for the same office in 1850, when there was 
no choice by the people ; and the election was consequently 
thrown into the General Court, as at that time it required a 
majority of votes in order to choose a public officer. By a co- 
alition between the Democrats and Free Soilers in the Legis- 
lature, on January 11, 1851, he was elected Governor of the 
Commonwealth; and, in a similar manner, on January 13, 
1852, he was again chosen to the same high office, as there 
had been no choice by the people at the preceding election. 
On March 7, 1853, he was defeated as a Democratic candidate 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 59 

in Groton for the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention of 
that year, though he was afterward elected a member from 
the town of Berlin in Worcester County. From 1853 to 1856 
he was an Overseer of Harvard College ; and from 1855 to 

1 86 1 he was the Secretary of the State Board of Education. 
After the repeal of the Missouri compromise in 1854, Mr. 

Boutwell was prominent among those who organized the Re- 
publican party, with which he has since acted, and in which 
for a long time he was a leader. In i860 he was a member 
of the Chicago Convention which nominated Lincoln for the 
presidency, and in February, 1861, was appointed by the Gov- 
ernor a delegate to the Peace Convention in Washington. In 

1862 he organized the new department of Internal Revenue, 
under President Lincoln, and served as the first Commis- 
sioner from July 17, 1862, to April, 1863. On November 4, 
1862, he was chosen a member of Congress from the Seventh 
District, and twice re-elected. On December 5 and 6, 1867, 
he made a speech in Congress in favor of impeaching Pres- 
ident Johnson, and, after the impeachment, became one of the 
seven managers of the trial. On March 11, 1869, he entered 
President Grant's cabinet as Secretary of the Treasury, where 
he remained until March 12, 1873, when he took his seat 
as a United States Senator from Massachusetts, in which 
capacity he served for four years. In the spring of 1877 
he was appointed by President Hayes to codify and edit the 
United States Statutes at Large. 

Governor Boutwell is still a resident of Groton, though he 
has a law office in Washington, where he passes a consider- 
able part of the year. He owns one of the largest farms in 
Middlesex County, known as the Chestnut Hills Farm, which 
is well stocked with Ayrshire cattle. He is easily accessible 
to all classes of people ; and his counsels on the every-day 
affairs of life are often sought, and always freely and readily 
given. He has filled more distinguished stations than any 
other citizen of the town, and his neighbors have justly taken 
a local pride in his political promotion. He began the study 
of law during the early days of his mercantile service, but 
was not admitted to the bar until January 16, i860, when 



60 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

he fulfilled the necessary requirements before the Supreme 
Judicial Court in Boston. 

On July 8, 1841, Mr. Boutwcll was married at Groton to 
Sarah Adelia, daughter of Nathan and Hannah (Jevvett) 
Thayer, of I lollis, New Hampshire ; and they have had two 
children, — Francis Marion and Georgianna Adelia. (A sketch 
of the son is given later in this Number.) Their golden wed- 
ding was celebrated at home last summer, and drew together 
a large concourse of friends and neighbors. Distinguished 
people came from different parts of the Commonwealth, 
and many despatches of congratulations were received from 
Washington and other distant cities. 

Edwin Coburn was a son of Pascal Paoli and Lydia (Jones) 
Coburn, and born at Dracut, on February 2, 18 19. He was 
one of nine children, being the second son as well as the sec- 
ond child. Fitting for college in part at Phillips Academy, 
Andover, he graduated at Amherst in the Class of 1841, and 
soon afterward began the study of law in Mr. Farley's office at 
Groton. In March, 1844, he was admitted to the Middlesex 
bar, and established himself at once in practice in connection 
with Mr. Farley. He was then a young man of much promise, 
always taking an active interest in local politics and espous- 
ing the side of the Whig party. 

At the town-meeting on November 9, 1846, Mr. Coburn 
was a candidate for the General Court, and Mr. Boutwell, 
since then Governor of the Commonwealth, was his oppo- 
nent ; and the result was a tie vote after each of two ballot- 
ings. During the evening of that day the excitement ran 
high, and expresses were sent in different directions, even to 
Manchester, New Hampshire, to bring home absent voters. 
On the next day Mr. Boutwell was chosen by five majority, 
and in consequence there was great rejoicing among the 
Democrats. 

About the year 1848 Mr. Coburn removed from Groton to 
Indianapolis, Indiana, where he continued in practice about 
nine years. In 1857 he removed to Chicago, and formed a 
partnership with the late James A. Mulligan, a young lawyer 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 6 1 

of Irish parentage. At the breaking out of the Rebellion his 
partner was commissioned as Colonel of the Twenty-third 
Illinois Volunteers, and soon afterward gained considerable 
reputation by his defence of Lexington, Missouri, where the 
regiment was captured and paroled. After its re-organization 
Mr. Coburn enlisted in the regiment, on June 10, 1862, and 
was at once appointed Sergeant Major. On September 1, 
1864, he was commissioned as First Lieutenant, and on May 
23, 1865, promoted to the rank of Major. On July 24, 1865, 
he was mustered out with the regiment at Richmond, Virginia, 
and on July 30 they arrived at Chicago for final payment 
and discharge. 

" The Obituary Record of Graduates of Amherst College 
for the Academical Year ending July 8, 1875 " (pages 63, 64), 
says that soon after the War Mr. Coburn joined the Fenians, 
and was sent, on business connected with their organization, 
to Ireland, where he was arrested and thrown into prison ; 
and that there, after a week's illness, he died of pneumonia, 
about the year 1867. I have tried to learn the exact date of 
his death as well as fuller particulars of his later life, but with- 
out success. In answer to inquiries, the late John Boyle 
O'Reilly wrote me as follows : — 

2Tfje ^tlot Utu'tarinl ftaoms, 

Boston, June iS, 1890. 
Dear Dr. Green, 

Never heard of Coburn. I shall inquire from some old Fenians, 
and let you know. 

Very truly yours, 

J. B. O'Reilly. 

By Mr. O'Reilly's lamented death less than two months 
later, on August 10, I was prevented from getting the de- 
sired information through that source. Major Coburn came 
of sturdy New-England stock, and of a race of Revolutionary 
patriots. He was a man of brilliant talents, well read in his 
profession, and died unmarried. 

James Lawrence was the eldest son of the Honorable 
Abbott and Katherine (Bigelow) Lawrence, and born in Bos- 



62 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

ton, on December 6, 1821. He graduated at Harvard Col- 
lege in the Class of 1840, and immediately afterward entered 
the Harvard Law School, where he remained two terms, 
though he never was admitted to the bar. For many years 
he was a partner in his father's firm of A. and A. Lawrence 
and Company, Boston, and in 1871 became a resident of 
Groton, where he owned and occupied the Lawrence home- 
stead on Farmers' Row. His death took place at Tunbridge 
Wells, England, on February 10, 1875. 

On March 16, 1852, Mr. Lawrence was married, first, to 
Elizabeth, daughter of William Hickling and Susan (Amory) 
Prescott, who died in Boston, on May 24, 1864; and at West 
Roxbury, on December 4, 1865, secondly, to Anna Lothrop, 
daughter of Thomas and Maria (Bussey) Motley. His widow 
afterward married Thomas Lindall Winthrop, Esq., of Boston. 

Daniel Needham is a son of James and Lydia (Breed) 
Needham, and was born in Salem, on May 24, 1822. He was 
educated partly at the Friends' School in Providence, and 
partly at Groton Academy. His father's family was of 
Quaker stock, and they removed to Groton in the year 1840. 
His mother died at Lynn, — where she was residing with a 
married daughter, — on June 27, 1890, at the advanced age 
of 95 years, 5 months, and 1 clay. She was born there on 
January 26, 1795. In 1845 the son began the study of law 
in the office of David Roberts, Esq., of Salem, and, after a 
brief interruption, continued it in the office of Bradford 
Russell, Esq., of Groton. He was admitted to the Middle- 
sex bar in April, 1850. 

Mr. Needham was an aide on the staff of Governor Bout- 
well during the two years of his administration. In 1853 he 
was chairman of the Democratic State Committee, and in 
1854 the Democratic candidate for Congress from the Seventh 
District, but was defeated by the Know Nothings, — a po- 
litical party that had then just risen into power, which it 
held for two or three years in this Commonwealth. He was 
town treasurer during 1853 and 1854. In the spring of 1855 
he removed to Ouechee, a village in the town of Hartford, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 63 

Vermont, where he carried on a farm. While a resident of 
that town he was chosen a member of the House of Repre- 
sentatives in 1858 and 1859, and a member of the Senate from 
Windsor County in i860 and 1861. He returned to Massa- 
chusetts in 1863, and settled again at Groton, where he soon 
became interested in the welfare of the town. On November 
7, 1866, he was chosen to the House of Representatives for 
the session of 1867 ; and on November 5, 1867, he was cho- 
sen to the Senate for the session of 1868, and re-chosen to 
the same body during the next year. The instances are very 
rare where a man has served in both legislative branches 
of two different States ; and particularly so where the term 
of service in the several branches occurred within a period of 
ten years, which was the experience that fell to his lot. 

Colonel Needham has been much interested in the schools 
of the town and in the subject of public education generally. 
At different times he has served as a member of the School 
Committee for seventeen years, and during this period, with 
the exception of one year, he was chairman of the Board. 
On June 25, 1874, he was chosen a Trustee of Lawrence 
Academy, and since June 27, 1889, has been President of the 
Board. He has been for many years Secretary of the New 
England Agricultural Society, and an officer since its organi- 
zation in the year 1864. 

Colonel Needham was married, on July 17, 1842, first, to 
Caroline Augusta, daughter of Benjamin and Caroline Au- 
gusta (Bancroft) Hall, of Groton, who died on June 30, 1878; 
and, on October 6, 1880, secondly, to Ellen Mary, daughter of 
George Dexter and Mary Jane (Kilburn) Brigham, of Groton. 
By the first marriage there were four children, of whom only 
one (Mrs. Hartwell) is now living ; and by the second there 
are three children. 

Samuel Parker Lewis was a son of the Honorable James 
and Harriet (Parker) Lewis, and' born at Pepperell, on No- 
vember 16, 1824. He fitted for college at Groton Academy, 
and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1844. On 
November 8 of the next autumn he entered the Law School 



G\ THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

of Harvard University, where he remained during two terms ; 
and for the two following years he appears in the annual cat- 
alogues as a Resident Graduate. He was admitted to the 
bar, on May 12, 1849, in Boston, where he opened an office 
at No. 47 Court Street, though living in Cambridge. About 
the year 1852 he removed to Pepperell, which at that time 
was without a lawyer. 

On October 4, 1870, Mr. Lewis was married, in Boston, to 
Catharine, daughter of Jonas Haskins and Catharine (Mar- 
shall) Titus, and a native of Detroit, Michigan. 

In the year 1874 Mr. Lewis opened an office at Ayer, while 
still living at Pepperell ; but during the autumn of 1875 he 
removed with his family to Groton, where he remained for five 
years. At the end of this period he returned to his native 
town, still keeping an office at Ayer. He died at Pepperell, 
on November 26, 1882. In December, 1881, his wife ob- 
tained a divorce from him on the ground of cruelty ; and she 
was married, secondly, on July 11, 1882, to Warren Havilah 
Atwood, Esq., a lawyer of Ayer. 

Mr. Lewis's father was a native of Billerica, and a graduate of 
Dartmouth College in the Class of 1807, having fitted for that 
institution at Groton Academy. The father afterward studied 
law in the office of the Honorable Samuel Dana, of Groton. 
The grandfather, Major James (b. 1761, d. 1828), for many 
years the postmaster of Groton, removed to this town from 
Billerica, with his father James (b. 1735, d. 1810), in the 
spring of 1796. Representatives of three generations of the 
family in succession were named James, and all at some 
period of their lives were residents of Groton. 

John Quincy Adams Griffin was a son of James and 
Hannah (Richey) Griffin, and born at Londonderry, New 
Hampshire, on July 8, 1826. At an early age he was living 
in Pelham, New Hampshire, and from that town in the year 
1844 he came to Groton, where he was a clerk in the post- 
office, living in Mr. Butler's family. He began at once to 
attend school at Groton Academy, and in the autumn of 1846 
entered Amherst College with the Freshman class, but he 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 65 

remained there only for one term. He used to say that he 
stayed as long as they could teach him anything. After he left 
Amherst he came back to Groton, and began the study of law 
in the office of George F. Farley, Esq., and was admitted to 
the bar in October, 1849. During the political canvass of 
1848, for a young man Mr. Griffin was quite conspicuous, on 
the side of the Free-soil party, both as a writer and public 
speaker ; and about this time, perhaps a little later, he was the 
editor of a Free-soil newspaper in Lawrence, though still living 
at Groton. In the year 1850 he removed to Charlestown, and 
opened an office in that city. The following card is printed 
in the " Bunker Hill Aurora and Boston Mirror " (Charles- 
town), January 27, 1855, where it appeared for more than 
six months : — 

Farley & Griffin, 

ATTORNEYS AND COUNSELLORS, 

Office No. 25 City Square, 

CHARLESTOWN. 

GEO. F. FARLEY. J. Q. A. GRIFFIN. 

Mr. Griffin, while a resident of Charlestown, took an active 
part in opposing the annexation of that city to Boston. On 
April 29, 1854, an Act was passed by the General Court 
consolidating the two cities, and duly accepted by a popu- 
lar vote. Owing to his exertions, the question of the validity 
of this Act was carried up to the Supreme Court of the 
Commonwealth, where it was pronounced unconstitutional. 
He was the author of two anonymous pamphlets opposing 
the union of these cities, entitled respectively : " A Candid 
Review of the Project of Annexation, by a Charlestown Man " 
(Charlestown, 1854, pages 12) ; and " Some Fresh Sugges- 
tions on the Project of Annexing Charlestown to Boston. 
By a Bunker Hill Boy" (Charlestown, 1855, pages 18). 

He also wrote, under the pseudonym of Azariah Bumpas, 
four articles, which appeared in "The Carpet Bag" (Boston). 
They were entitled " Reports of Cases argued and decided in 

9 



66 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

the Old Fogey Court during Hilary and Michelmas terms, 
A. D. 1849," and they contain allusions to events that were 
familiar to all Grotonians forty years ago. The first article, 
or " Vol. 1," was printed in the issue (No. 18) of that weekly 
paper for August 2, 1852, and the last number, or " Vol. 4," 
in the issue (No. 25) for September 20, the other two articles 
appearing in Numbers 20 and 22 of the paper. The Court 
consisted of a Chief Justice and two Associate Justices, whose 
real names can be made out easily through a thin disguise ; 
and the Reporter was " Azariah Bumpas, of Boynton's 
Temple, Barrister at Law." While a resident of Groton, Mr. 
Griffin was an inmate of John Boynton's boarding-house. 

Mr. Griffin, during the session of 1855, was one of the 
representatives to the General Court from Charlestown, and 
the Free-soil candidate for Speaker of the House, when he 
received twenty-nine votes ; and, during the sessions of 1859 
and i860, he was also a representative from Maiden, whither 
he had previously removed, though still keeping his office in 
Charlestown. On May 1, 1852, he was married to Sarah 
Elizabeth, daughter of James and Rispah (Farmer) Wood, of 
Concord ; and they have had four children, of whom two now 
survive. His wife had previously taught the District School 
No. 1, in Groton, during the winter term of 1849 and the 
summer term of 1850 ; and it was in this town that he became 
acquainted with her. 

Mr. Griffin died of consumption, at Maiden, on May 22, 
1866, deeply lamented by a wide circle of friends among all 
classes of people. The " Boston Evening Transcript," May 23, 
pays a short but just tribute to his character. 

Josiah Kendall Bennett was a son of Josiah Kendall and 
Lucinda (Nutting) Bennett, and born at Groton, on February 
4, 1 83 1. He pursued his preparatory studies at Lawrence 
Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1853, though his Junior year was passed at Yale College. As 
a student he took high rank, and at Commencement received 
an honorable part. Immediately after his graduation he was 
chosen the Master of Hopkins Classical School at Cambridge, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 6j 

where he filled the position for one year, when it was merged 
under certain conditions, on August 28, 1854, in the Cam- 
bridge High School. During his stay in Cambridge he 
attended the Law School for two full years (1 854-1 856), 
receiving the degree of LL.B. in 1856. He was admitted to 
the Suffolk bar on November 22 of the following autumn, and 
began the practice of his profession in Boston, having an office 
at No. 20 Court Street, where he remained about three years, 
when he returned to his native town. 

Mr. Bennett was an excellent scholar, and highly useful in 
all the public affairs of the town. He was an able writer, and 
a frequent contributor to the columns of the press. His articles 
have appeared in the " Bibliotheca Sacra," and in "The Con- 
gregationalist " (Boston), and other newspapers. In the 
Bibliotheca (XIII. 564-574) for July, 1856, is an article 
from his pen, entitled " Aliens in Israel." On June 29, 1863, 
he was chosen one of the Trustees of Lawrence Academy, and 
he continued a member of the Board until the time of his 
death. During the whole of this period he was the Secretary 
of the Board, and an active member of several important 
committees. On March 6, 1865, he was elected one of the 
School Committee, in which capacity he served for eight 
years ; and during this time he was the author of several 
annual reports. In the earlier part of his life he taught 
school at Groton, where his gentle and winning ways always 
inspired love and respect among his pupils. For many years 
he was a member of the Groton Musical Association, and a 
communicant of the Union Congregational Church, where 
he had been clerk of the parish, and Superintendent of the 
Sunday-school. On May 15, 1872, he was appointed Standing 
Justice, First District Court of Northern Middlesex, a tribunal 
at that time just organized. About two months before his 
death, in order to be near the field of his judicial labors, he 
removed to Ayer, where he died on January 23, 1874. Judge 
Bennett was never a robust man, and during his later years 
the germs of consumption were developing in his system, 
until finally he fell a victim to the disease. 

Mr. Bennett was married, on June 29, 1865, to Abby Ann, 



68 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

daughter of Reuben Lewis and Lucinda (Hill) Torrey, of 
Groton. His widow still resides at Groton. 

Edward Albert Kelly is the eldest child of Albert 
Livingston and Caroline (Peirce) Kelly, and was born in 
that part of Frankfort, Maine, which is now Winterport, on 
May 30, 1 83 1. He attended school at Ellsworth, Foxcroft 
and North Yarmouth, and in 1846 entered the Freshman 
class at Bowdoin College, where he remained until the middle 
of his Junior year. In 185 1 he began the study of law in 
the office of George F. Farley, Esq., of Groton, and after his 
admission to the bar on May 21, 1853, he practised in part- 
nership with his preceptor until Mr. Farley's death, which 
took place on November 8, 1855. He remained at Groton 
until the year 1861, when he removed to Boston, where he 
continues to live. In his practice he makes a specialty of 
will cases and the care of trust property. 

Mr. Kelly was married, on November 15, 1854, to Mary 
Adams, daughter of George Frederick and Lucy (Rice) 
Farley ; and they have one child, Elizabeth Farley Kelly. 
He received the honorary degree of A. M. from Bowdoin 
College at the Commencement in 1869. 

Andrew Jackson Clough was a son of Winthrop and 
Susan (Bryant) Clough, and born at Montpelier, Vermont, on 
August 3, 1 83 1. His parents were natives of New Hamp- 
shire and of Scotch descent , and they had a family of five 
children, of whom Andrew was the third son and the fourth 
child. His mother died when he was three years old, and he 
was brought up by his paternal grandmother, then living at 
Strafford, Vermont. His father, who had been a soldier in 
the United States Army for many years, in 1834 removed to 
the State of Ohio, where he died in 1877 at an advanced age. 
When fourteen years old, Andrew came to Massachusetts in 
order to live with an elder brother. 

He began the study of law in the office of the Honorable 
John Preston, of New Ipswich, New Hampshire, which he 
continued to pursue under the direction of Morse and Clark, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 69 

of Lowell. In September, 1856, he entered the Harvard Law 
School, where he remained one year ; and was admitted to 
the bar in 1858. Immediately afterward he opened an office 
in Woods's block at Groton Junction, now Aver, which he kept 
as long as he lived, and on September 28, 1858, he was com- 
missioned as a Trial Justice. He made his home in Shirley, 
where he always took a deep interest in the welfare of the 
public schools, partly because he had been a teacher himself. 
He was a member of Saint Paul's Lodge of Free and Accepted 
Masons, Groton. 

During the War of the Rebellion he was active in raising a 
company of the Fifty-third Regiment of Massachusetts Militia, 
which was mustered into the service, as Company D of that or- 
ganization, at Camp Stevens in Groton, on October 17, 1862. 
It was recruited in Groton, Shirley, Townsend, and other 
neighboring towns, and on the day of the muster he was com- 
missioned as Captain. For his patriotic exertions in helping 
to enlist the soldiers, he was presented, by his fellow-townsmen 
of Shirley, with a sword, belt, and sash, as tokens of their 
esteem. Owing to physical disabilities, he was honorably dis- 
charged from the military service on January 23, 1863. 

Mr. Clough was married, on March 6, i860, to Mary Jane, 
daughter of Lewis and Almira Woods (Hartwell) Blood, of 
Shirley. Her father was a native of Groton, where he was 
born on March 15, 1805 ; and her mother a native of Town- 
send, where she was born on July 10, 1813. Mr. Clough died 
of consumption at Shirley, on June 14, 1868, after a lingering 
illness, and was buried with Masonic honors. He left a 
widow and three children to mourn his loss. 

Charles Jacobs is the youngest son of Sylvester and 
Cynthia (Stearns) Jacobs, and was born at Groton, on June 
18, 1832. He fitted for college at Lawrence Academy, and 
graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1853. After 
leaving Cambridge he was engaged for nearly two years in 
overseeing his father's farm; and, on March 1, 1855, he 
began the study of law in the office of John Spaulding, Esq., 
of Groton, where with various interruptions he continued 



JO THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

during the years 1855 to 1858. In i860 he was studying 
his chosen profession under the tuition of Bradford Russell, 
Esq., of Groton, and later, for a short time, in the office of 
his friend and classmate, Josiah K. Bennett, Esq., of Groton. 
In the spring of 1861, when he was intending to apply for 
admission to the bar, Mr. Russell gave him the following 
certificate, but it was never used: — 

Cambridge, March 4, 1861. 

I certify that Charles Jacobs, of Groton, is a man of good moral 
character, that he has studied Law under my direction and in my 
office one year, commencing January 15, i860 ; and that previously 
he had studied Law in the office of John Spaulding, Jr., Esq. ; and 
that since January 15, 1861, he has studied under the direction 
of J. K. Bennett, Esq., a counsellor at law. I therefore recom- 
mend Mr. Jacobs for admission to the Bar, upon examination or 

otherwise. 

Bradford Russell. 

While Mr. Jacobs has never been admitted to the bar, he 
has had considerable experience in business of a legal char- 
acter, such as drawing up papers, documents, etc., for his 
neighbors and others. He is engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
owning one of the finest farms in Groton, which once be- 
longed to Dr. Oliver Prescott, Jr. He takes a deep interest 
in the cause of public education ; and since the spring of 
1866 has served continuously, with the exception of two 
years, as a member of the School Board, and part of this 
time Chairman. His father was born at Scituate, on Sep- 
tember 1, 1782, and his mother at Worcester, on September 
13, 1792; and both his grandfathers served in the army 
during the Revolution. 

Salmox Whitney was a son of Justin and Mary Cash- 
ing (Cotton) Whitney, and born at Harvard, on March 4, 
1833. He passed his boyhood in his native town, and be- 
gan the study of law in the office of Isaac Stevens Morse, 
Esq., of Lowell, at that time District Attorney of Middlesex 
County. In the autumn of 1859 he entered the Harvard Law 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. /I 

School, where he remained during one term. In the year 
i860 he was admitted to the bar at the March term of the 
Middlesex Court at East Cambridge, and soon afterward 
opened an office at Groton Junction, where at one time he 
was associated in professional business with James Gerrish. 
On the breaking out of the Rebellion, he enlisted in Co. B of 
the famous Sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Militia, which 
company was made up for the most part of Groton soldiers. 
He was mustered in on April 22, 1861, and discharged on 
August 2, at the expiration of his term of service. Again, 
during the next year, he enlisted in Co. C. (another Groton 
company) of the Fifty-third Regiment of Massachusetts Militia, 
where he was mustered in on November 6, 1862. This 
regiment, while its ranks were recruiting, was encamped at 
Groton, on the banks of the Nashua River, and subsequently 
it embarked for New Orleans. While in that city Mr. 
Whitney lay in a hospital for several months, sick with con- 
sumption, and on June 6, 1863, he was discharged from the 
army for disability. After reaching home he continued to 
decline, and died at Leominster, on July 26, 1864. During 
his last illness he bore cheerful testimony to the support he 
received from a strong faith in the Christian religion. An 
obituary notice in the " Boston Daily Journal," August 10, 
1864, under " Deaths," pays a just tribute to his character. 

Watson Kendall Barnard is a son of William Kendall 
and Nancy (Denny) Barnard, and was born at Dorchester, 
on September 26, 1838. He attended school at Lawrence 
Academy, Groton, from the year 1849 to 1855, when he en- 
tered Dartmouth College, graduating at that institution in 
the Class of 1859. He studied law in the office of Edward 
A. Kelly, Esq., of Groton, and in November, i860, was 
admitted to the bar ,of the Lane County (Oregon) District 
Court. On October 22, 1863, he was married to Rebecca 
Phillips, daughter of William Henry and Mary Elizabeth 
(Hayes) Prichard, of Groton, who was born in New York. 
Mr. Barnard is now a resident of Atlantic, Cass County, 
Iowa. 



72 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Francis Marion Boutwell is an only son of Governor 
George Sewall and Sarah Adelia (Thayer) Boutwell, and 
was born at Groton, on February 26, 1847. He received his 
early education at the public schools in his native town, and 
was a member of the class that comprised the High School, 
when it first opened in the Town House, on December 5, 1859, 
a few months after the building was finished. In the year 

1864 he was a scholar at Leicester Academy, but the last 
two terms of his schooling were passed, in the autumn of 

1865 and the following winter, at Lawrence Academy, Groton. 
During his boyhood, like many other country lads, he worked 
on his father's farm ; and in the summer of 1862, he drove, as 
a part of his daily duty, a milk wagon. The regular delivery 
of milk at the customers' houses each morning was then a 
new business in Groton, where it was begun a year or two 
previously. 

On April 2, 1866, Mr. Boutwell entered the wholesale 
woollen house of Messrs. Burrage Brothers and Company, 
No. 35 Franklin Street, Boston, where he remained for four 
years. On July 1, 1870, he went to Chicago, and was em- 
ployed in the woollen department of John V. Farwell and 
Company, a large mercantile house. After the great fire in 
that city, on October 9, 1871, he returned home and entered 
the railroad-supply store of Norman C. Munson in Boston, 
where he remained until the financial crisis of 1873, when he 
was compelled to seek other employment. 

In October, 1874, Mr. Boutwell began the study of law in 
his father's office at Boston, and, though he has not been 
admitted to the bar, since the year 1877 he has made a 
specialty of soliciting patents. During this period he has 
had his office in Boston, while living at Groton and for a large 
paxf <>Cthe time taking charge of the farm. He was clerk of 
theVCommittee on the revision of the Laws of the United 
States, in the winter of i8y6-/j, during the Forty-fourth 
Congress, and after the adjournment of that Congress he 
helped his father for a short time in revising the Statutes at 
Large of the United States. From November 20, 1883, to 
April 1, 1884, he was one of the assistants to his father, who 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 73 

was the counsel for the Government, before the French and 
American Claims Commission. At the date last named the 
Commission, having completed its work, ceased to exist. 

Mr. Boutwell is much interested in agricultural matters as 
well as in the history of his native town. He has been an 
officer in various organizations for promoting the welfare of 
the farmers, and he is also the author of several pamphlets 
on antiquarian subjects. 

Theophilus Gilman Smith is a son of Theophilus Staniells 
and Mary Burley (Gilman) Smith, and born at Stratham, 
New Hampshire, on December 29, 1848. He pursued his 
preparatory studies at the Somerville High School, and grad- 
uated at Harvard College in the Class of 1871. He studied 
law in the office of Judge E. Rockwood Hoar, Boston, and 
also attended lectures at the School of Law connected with 
the Boston University, where he received the degree of 
LL.B. on June 3, 1874. He was admitted to the Suffolk 
bar on April 13, 1874, at which time he was a resident of 
Somerville, and since then has had an office in Boston. In 
the autumn of 1887 he removed with his family to Groton, 
where he bought a farm in the southerly part of the town, 
which he manages in connection with his professional busi- 
ness at Boston. 

On May 11, 1875, he was married at Somerville to Julia 
Warton, daughter of George and Marie (Warton) Kaan, who 
is a native of New York City. Her father was born at 
Nagy Canizsa, Hungary, on April 23, 1812, and her mother 
at Iglau, Austria, on March 23, 1824. 

James Lawrence is the eldest son of James and Elizabeth 
(Prescott) Lawrence, and was born in Boston, on March 23, 
1853. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1874, 
and afterward entered Harvard Law School, where he passed 
two terms, though he never completed his professional studies. 
On his father's death he inherited the Lawrence homestead 
at Groton, and since that time has been extensively engaged 
in farming; and raising; stock. 



74 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

On January 16, 1875, Mr. Lawrence was married to Caro- 
line Estelle, youngest daughter of Enoch Redington and 
Caroline Augusta (Patten) Mudge, of Boston ; and they have 
two sons and a daughter. 

John Lawrence is a son of Abbott and Harriette White 
(Paige) Lawrence, and was born in Boston, on April 27, 1861. 
He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1885, and 
afterward passed more than two years at the Harvard Law 
School, though he never was admitted to the bar. In 1890 
he became a resident of Groton, where he lives on Farmers' 
Row. 

On June 16, 1887, Mr. Lawrence was married to Martha 
Endicott, only daughter of Samuel Endicott and Marianne 
Cabot (Lee) Peabody, of Salem ; and they have two 
daughters. 



Among the lawyers, who have lived and practised in the 
town, are two Governors of the Commonwealth, one United 
States Senator, three members of Congress, besides a Dele- 
gate to the Continental Congress, a member of the President's 
Cabinet, various Justices and Chief Justices of different 
Courts, three Speakers of the Massachusetts House of Rep- 
resentatives, an Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, a 
President of the State Senate, and two members of the 
Executive Council. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 75 



MAJOR SWAN AND MR. ROVVE. 

Sketches of Major Swan and Mr. Rowe are here inserted, 
inasmuch as their work was largely of a professional char- 
acter, although they were not lawyers. They seem to deserve 
a place in this Account. 

William Swan was a son of William and Levinah (Keyes) 
Swan, and born in Boston, on March 18, 1745. About 
the year 1774 he became engaged in trade at Groton, but 
owing to the political condition of the country and the pecu- 
liar state of the currency, he was soon compelled to give up 
business. In 1777 he belonged to a company of soldiers 
that marched from Groton to Saratoga in order to take part 
in the campaign against Burgoyne's army. During the 
Revolutionary period the courts were held at Groton ; and 
from May 28, 1783, to 1789, Mr. Swan was the clerk of the 
Court of Common Pleas. On December 2, 1789, he was 
appointed Justice of the Peace, with authority to act as Trial 
Justice. On October 19, 1778, he was commissioned, by a 
majority of the Council of Massachusetts Bay as Captain in 
the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, and was the first com- 
mander of the Groton Artillery Company ; and under this 
authority he did a large amount of official work. In 1793, 
when Groton Academy was incorporated, he acted as treas- 
urer of the institution ; and in many other ways he was a 
useful citizen of the town. In August, 1794, Major Swan 
removed to Otisfield, Maine, where he remained until March, 
1796, when he went to Gardiner, and thence in 1806, to Win- 
slow. He was a member from that town of the Convention 
that met at Portland in October, 18 19, and framed the Consti- 
tution of the prospective State of Maine. He was a man of 
strict integrity and high character, and always a strong sup- 
porter of religious and educational institutions. He died at 
Winslow, on June 24, 1835 5 an< ^ ^ ls w ^ e at the sam e place, 
on September 15, 18 15. 



j6 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

In 1776 Mr. Swan was married at Groton to Mercy Porter, 
of Weymouth ; and they were blessed with ten children, of 
whom eight were born at Groton, and the others in Maine. 
He built the large house on the north side of School Street, 
now owned by Charles Woolley. 

See the present volume (pages 96-98) of this Historical 
Series, for other particulars concerning Mr. Swan and his 
family. 

Samuel William Rowe was a son of Samuel Osburn and 
Martha (Woods) Rowe, and born at Groton, on June 13, 1803. 
In early life he was a carpenter by trade, but during many of 
his later years he performed so much judicial labor that I am 
constrained to notice him in this Account. On May 7, 1858, 
he was appointed Trial Justice, and his commission was many 
times renewed. His fellow townsmen gave him the title of 
Judge, which seemed to comport with his natural dignity. 

Mr. Rowe was married, on December 23, 1832, first, to 
Amelia, daughter of Zechariah, Jr., and Amelia (Blood) Fitch, 
of Groton; on April 30, 1846, secondly, to Lucy, daughter of 
Rufus and Lucy (Sawtell) Moors, of Groton, who died on 
September 21, 1879; and, on January 19, 1881, thirdly, to 
Louisa, daughter of Alexander and Anna (Barrett) Lynch, 
of Mason, New Hampshire. There was a legal separation 
between Mr. Rowe and his first wife, who is still living. 
He died at Groton on January 15, 1884. 



NATIVES OF GROTON, 



AND 



PERSONS CONNECTED RY RESIDENCE WITH THE TOWN, 
WHO HAVE PRACTISED LAW ELSEWHERE. 



William Amos Bancroft is the eldest son of Charles and 
Lydia Emeline (Spaulding) Bancroft, and was born at Groton, 
on April 26, 1855. He attended school at Lawrence Acad- 
emy, Groton, and afterward at Phillips Exeter Academy, and 
graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1878. He 
studied law at the Harvard Law School, and also in the office 
of William Burnham Stevens, Esq., at Boston, and was ad- 
mitted to the Suffolk bar on November 21, 1881. In the year 
1885 he was appointed Superintendent of the Cambridge Rail- 
road Company, and in 1888, after its union with the West 
End Street Railway Company, was made General Roadmaster 
of the consolidated line, from which, after one year's service, 
he retired in order to resume the practice of his profession. 
Mr. Bancroft has always taken a deep interest in military 
matters, and during his Freshman year at college enlisted 
in Company B, Fifth Massachusetts Militia Regiment. On 
March 31, 1879, ne was commissioned as Captain of the com- 
pany, and, on February 7, 1882, as Colonel of the regiment, 
a position which he still holds. He has also been much 
interested in boating, and as an undergraduate was a noted 
oarsman. He was a member of the Cambridge Common 
Council for one year (1882), and also of the House of Repre- 
sentatives during 1883, 1884, and 1885. On December 2, 
1890, he was chosen a member of the Board of Aldermen, 



78 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

and upon its organization at the beginning of the year 1891, 
was made the President of the body ; and on December 8, 
1 891, was re-chosen to the same body, and by a unanimous 
vote again made the presiding officer. 

On January 18, 1879, Colonel Bancroft was married to 
Mary, daughter of Joseph and Catharine (Perry) Shaw, of 
Boston; and they have three children. He is now engaged 
in the active practice of his profession, having an office in 
Boston. 

Albert Marshall Bigelow is a son of Josiah and Harriet 
Munroe (Sawin) Bigelow, and was born at Brighton, on May 
5, 1835. His father bought the Judge Dana place, at the 
head of Farmers' Row, in 1850, when he removed to Groton, 
where he died on January 20, 1857. The son received his 
early education at the Boston Latin School, Roxbury Latin 
School, and Lawrence Academy, and in 1852 entered Am- 
herst College, where he remained three years. When at 
school and college, he never wrote his middle name, either in 
full or as an initial letter, though it rightfully belonged to 
him; but since that period he has always used it. In 1857 
he began the study of law in New York City, where he was 
admitted to the bar in 1859, and where he continued to prac- 
tise until 1883, when he retired from the profession. 

On December 18, 1862, Mr. Bigelow was married, first, to 
Lucy Brace, daughter of the Reverend Dr. John and Mary 
Skinner (Brace) Todd, of Pittsfield, who died at Montclair, 
New Jersey, on June 15, 1878, leaving two sons and a daugh- 
ter; and, on April 13, 1880, in New York, secondly, to Mary 
Anna, daughter of Clark and Nancy (Perry) Wheelock, by 
whom there are two children, — a son and a daughter. In 
1855 and 1857 his first wife was attending school at Lawrence 
Academy; and from January 3, 1827, to January 8, 1833, her 
father was the minister of the Union Congregational Church 
at Groton. Mr. Bigelow is now a resident of Morristown, 
New Jersey. 

John Prescott Bigelow was the second son of the Hon- 
orable Timothy and Lucy (Prescott) Bigelow, and born at 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 79 

Groton, on August 25, 1797. He pursued his preparatory 
studies at Groton Academy, and graduated at Harvard Col- 
lege in the Class of 18 15. After leaving Cambridge he read 
law, first in the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, 
of Groton, his uncle by marriage, and afterward in the office 
of his father; and in 18 18 he was admitted to the Suffolk bar. 
The large and lucrative practice of his father at once opened 
a wide field for the young advocate, and for a time he was en- 
gaged in the practice of his profession, attaining a high posi- 
tion, which promised him future eminence at the bar if he 
had continued to devote himself to the law. 

Very early in life Mr. Bigelow took a deep interest in poli- 
tics, and as a writer on the public topics of the day he ac- 
quired considerable reputation. He was also a warm supporter 
of the militia as well as an active member, at one time hold- 
ing the position of Captain of the Medford Independent Light 
Infantry, and subsequently Division Inspector of the Militia. 
On December 11, 1826, he was chosen a member of the 
Common Council of the city of Boston from Ward No. 9, 
and re-chosen for the six following years, holding the pres- 
idency of the body during the last two terms. On May 8, 
1828, he was elected by the Whigs a member of the House of 
Representatives, and, with the single exception of 1833, he 
was re-elected until 1835. On January 14, 1836, by a joint 
Convention of the House and Senate, he was chosen Secretary 
of the Commonwealth, a position which he filled for eight 
years with marked ability ; and on January 4, 1845, by a 
joint Convention he was chosen a member of the Executive 
Council, and held the place for five years, thus concluding a 
term of official life at the State House which in length is per- 
haps without a precedent in modern times. On December 1 1, 
1848, he was elected Mayor of Boston, and re-elected during 
the two following years, holding the office for three succes- 
sive terms. Two of the Mayors of Boston have been natives 
of Groton, and their birthplaces are within a few rods of 
each other. 

After leaving active public life, Mr. Bigelow became a 
member of the Board of Trustees of the Public Library, an 



8o THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

institution in which he always took much interest. The first 
gift of money to the library was made in his name. Upon his 
retirement from office his friends raised a subscription with 
the intention to present to him a silver vase, not only as a 
mark of their appreciation of his public services, but as a tes- 
timonial of their personal esteem. Mr. Bigelow was strongly 
opposed to the gift, and when it was suggested that the money 
be given to the library, the proposition met with his warm 
approval ; and the donation was accordingly made. When 
he retired from the Trusteeship, the City Council, on January 
29, 1869, passed some flattering resolutions, setting forth his 
continued interest in the library, and recognizing him as the 
founder of the institution. 

On March 8, 1824, Mr. Bigelovv was married to Louisa 
Anne, daughter of David L. Brown, an English landscape 
painter, who was at that time a resident of Boston. She was 
a native of Liverpool, England, and died in London, on Oc- 
tober 22, 1847, during a temporary visit, aged 47 years. Mr. 
Bigelow died at his residence in Boston, on July 4, 1872, and 
bequeathed $10,000 to Lawrence Academy. His father was 
one of the original Trustees, and served through a period of 
twenty years. Bigelow Hall, a dormitory of the institution 
built during the autumn of 1863, was named for the son. 

Thomas Bond was a son of Thomas and Esther (Merriam) 
Bond, and born at Groton, on April 2, 1778. He pursued his 
preparatory studies at Groton Academy, and graduated at Har- 
vard College in the Class of 1801. Eight members of this class 
were either natives of Groton or at some time residents of the 
town. In the year 1 796 his father's family removed to Augusta, 
Maine. After graduation Thomas began the study of law in 
the office of the Honorable Samuel Sumner Wilde, of Hallo- 
well, Maine, with whom, soon after his admission to the bar, 
he became associated as a partner. This business connection 
continued until Mr. Wilde was raised to the bench of the 
Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, when Mr. Bond 
took sole charge of the affairs of the office. For more than 
twenty years he maintained a high and honorable position at 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 8 I 

the bar, faithfully fulfilling all trusts, and earning the reputation 
of an able lawyer and an honest man. He was a firm and 
steadfast Federalist in his politics, and when the War of 1812 
brought out the conservatives of Maine and New England, 
he was chosen, during the years 181 3 and 18 14, to represent 
the town of Hallowell in the Massachusetts House of Repre- 
sentatives. In 1822 and 1823 he was a member of the Senate 
of Maine from Kennebec County; and in 1826 he was ap- 
pointed, on the part of the Senate, a Commissioner to revise 
the penal code of that State. In 1824 he was chosen a Trus- 
tee of Bowdoin College, which he continued to hold until the 
time of his death, on March 28, 1827, at Hallowell. 

On December 1, 1805, Mr. Bond was married to Lucretia 
Flagg, daughter of Dr. Benjamin and Abigail (Odlin) Page, of 
Hallowell ; and they had a family of three children, one son 
and two daughters, all now dead. See North's History of 
Augusta (pages 805, 806), for a sketch of the family. 

In Hallowell, (Me.) on Wednesday last, Hon. Thomas Bond, 
aged 48. Mr. Bond was a native of Groton in this State. He 
graduated in 1801 at Harvard University, and held a distinguished 
rank in his class. On leaving college, he became a student, and 
afterwards a partner in the office of Judge Wilde. He represented 
Hallowell for several years in the Legislature of Massachusetts, 
and after the separation of Maine, was elected a Senator for. two 
succeeding years. 

"The Massachusetts Spy, and Worcester County Advertiser " (Worcester) , 
April 4, 1S27. 

Henry Adams Bullard was the second son of the Rev- 
erend John and Elizabeth (Adams) Bullard, and born at 
Groton, on September 9, 1788. His father was the settled 
minister of Pepperell, but the printed accounts of his life say 
that he was born at Groton, which is my authority for the 
statement. He fitted for college at Groton Academy, — as 
also did two of his brothers, — and graduated at Harvard Col- 
lege in the Class of 1807. He studied law, first in the office 
of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of Groton, and then in the 
office of Peter A. Browne, Esq., of Philadelphia. Soon after- 



82 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

ward, in the spring of 1813, he joined a revolutionary ex- 
pedition against a part of Mexico, in which he acted as an 
aide and military secretary to the leader, Don Jose" Alvarez 
Toledo. The revolutionists were badly defeated at San An- 
tonio, and Bullard suffered many hardships. On his return 
he reached Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he established 
himself and began the practice of his profession, in which he 
soon reached a prominent position. He was a Justice of the 
Sixth District Court of Louisiana from the year 1822 to 183 1 ; 
a Representative in Congress from Alexandria and New 
Orleans (Twenty-first, Twenty-second, and Thirty-first Con- 
gresses), 1831-1834, 1850, 1851 ; a Justice of the Supreme 
Court of Louisiana. 1834-1846, with the exception of a few 
months in 1839, when he acted as Secretary of State. Judge 
Bullard was the first president of the Louisiana Historical 
Society, and also a Corresponding Member of the Massa- 
chusetts Historical Society. In 1847, while resident of New 
Orleans, he was appointed Professor of Civil Law in the Law 
School of Louisiana; and in 1850 he was chosen a member 
of the Legislature. A short time afterward he was elected to 
the Thirty-first Congress to fill a vacancy caused by the 
resignation of the Honorable Charles Magill Conrad, who had 
been appointed Secretary of War in President Fillmore's 
cabinet. After the adjournment of Congress, on his return 
home, Mr. Bullard was prostrated by the fatigue of the travel, 
and after lingering three weeks, died in New Orleans, on 
April 17, 185 1. 

Judge Bullard was married to Sarah Keasar (?), a South- 
ern lady, and had several children. 

John Haskell Butler is a son of John and Mary Jane 
(Barker) Butler, and was born at Middleton, on August 31, 
1 84 1. In the year 1854 his father removed to Groton, where 
he died on February 10, 1870. The son obtained his early 
educational training in the district schools of Groton and 
Shirley, and at Lawrence Academy, where he fitted ior 
college. He graduated at Yale College in the Class of 1863, 
and began the study of his profession in the office of Griffin 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 83 

(J. Q. A.) and Stearns (Wm. S.) at Charlestown. He was 
admitted to the Middlesex bar in October, 1868, and at once 
formed a business connection with Mr. Stearns, his former 
preceptor, which has continued uninterruptedly since that 
time. He is now a resident of Somerville ; and in 1880 and 
1 88 1 represented Ward No. 1 of that city in the House of 
Representatives. He has also served twelve years as a mem- 
ber of the Somerville School Board. On April 29, 1884, he 
was chosen by the Legislature a member of the Executive 
Council, in place of the Honorable Charles Rankin McLean, 
deceased, and during the two following years was re-chosen by 
the voters of the district. He is connected with a large 
number of secret societies and social organizations, and in 
some of them holds high office. 

On January 1, 1870, Mr. Butler was married, at Pittston, 
Pennsylvania, to Laura Louisa, daughter of Jabez Benedict 
and Mary (Ford) Bull ; and they have one son, John Lawton 
Butler. 

Ira Osborn Carter was a son of Lewis and Sarah (Sawyer) 
Carter, and born at Berlin, Massachusetts, on November 18, 
1832. He graduated at Paducah College (Kentucky) in the 
Class of 1853, and afterward was connected with the institu- 
tion as a professor. On March 6, i860, he was married to 
Susan French, daughter of Walter and Roxana (Fletcher) 
Shattuck, of Groton. In the autumn of 1863 he was a mem- 
ber of the Harvard Law School, where he remained one term ; 
and in the annual catalogue he is put clown as a resident of 
Groton. He died at Arlington, — where he had lived for 
twenty years, — on February 13, 1885, leaving no children, 
and was buried in his native town. 

Moses Gill Cobb is an only son of Elias Hull and Rebecca 
Buttrick (Gill) Cobb, and was born at Princeton, on November 
24, 1820. The father's family removed to Groton in 1834, and 
the son was attending Groton Academy during the same 
year. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1843, 
which he entered during the Sophomore year. In 1846 he 



84 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

took the degree of LL.B. at the Harvard Law School, where 
he had passed two years. In the annual catalogues of the 
College, during the Sophomore year, he is put down as of 
Groton, and, during the Junior and Senior years, as of Spring- 
field, but, while in the Law School, he appears as of Charles- 
town. He was admitted to the Suffolk bar on January 26, 
1846, and began the practice of his profession in Charlestown, 
where he was associated in business with General James Dana, 
at No. 40 Main Street. In May, 1847, t0 ^ a vacancy, he 
was chosen a member of the Common Council from Ward 
No. 1 of that city, and, during the next year, was re-chosen 
to the same office ; and in the autumn of 1853, to fill another 
vacancy, he was elected an Alderman from Ward No. 2. In 
the year 1855 he removed with his family to Dorchester, at 
the same time keeping his office in Charlestown. While a 
resident of Dorchester, he was chosen a member of the Ex- 
ecutive Council for 1856, and he also served on the School 
Board for several years. Mr. Cobb took a warm interest 
in military matters, and, as early as 1853, was prominent in 
organizing a company of Light Artillery, which before the 
War of the Rebellion had some local celebrity. At the 
breaking out of the War, he was active in the enlistment of 
another company, with the understanding that he was to be 
captain ; but near the end of July, 1861, owing to financial 
troubles, he was obliged to give up his command, then sta- 
tioned at Camp Wollaston, Quincy, and, on July 31, Captain 
Ormand Francis Nims was commissioned in his place. This 
company, under the name of Nims's Battery, afterward acquired 
considerable fame in the army for its gallant services. 

On October 14, 1846, Mr. Cobb was married to Sophia, 
daughter of Edmund and Sophia (Sewall) Munroe, of Boston ; 
and there have been six children. Since leaving Boston more 
than thirty years ago, he has been a resident of California ; and 
his present address is San Francisco. 

Amos Henry Farnswoktii is the eldest son of Dr. Amos 
and Mary (Bourne | Webber) Farnsworth, and was born in 
Boston, on August 8, 1825. His father removed to Groton 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 85 

in the year 1832, though for many generations the family had 
lived in the town. He pursued his preparatory studies at 
Groton Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1844. In the spring of 1845 ^ e entered the Harvard 
Law School, where he remained three terms, and in the year 
1846 took the degree of LL.B. He continued his profes- 
sional studies in the office of the Honorable Origen Storrs 
Seymour, of Litchfield, Connecticut, afterward a Judge of the 
Supreme Judicial Court, and Governor of the State, and he 
was admitted to the bar of Connecticut. He was also ad- 
mitted to the bar of New York in 1850, but owing to ill health 
has never engaged in the active practice of his profession. 

On June 6, 1850, Mr. Farnsworth was married to Julia 
Paine, daughter of the Honorable John Paine and Maria J. 
(Tallmadge) Cushman, of Troy, New York ; and since that 
time he has been a resident of that city. 

Claudius Buchanan Farnsworth is the eldest son of 
Luke and Sarah (Hartwell) Farnsworth, and was born at 
Stanstead, Province of Quebec, on January 8, 181 5. At that 
period his family was living temporarily in Canada. He passed 
his boyhood, working on his father's farm at Groton, and 
received no schooling from the time he was fourteen years 
old until the spring of 1836, when he began to fit for college 
under the instruction of William L. Chaplin, Esq., of Groton. 
He attended school for a short while, first, at New Ipswich 
Academy, and, secondly, at Groton Academy, then under the 
preceptorship of the Reverend Horace Herrick, finishing his 
preparatory studies in the summer of 1837. He graduated at 
Harvard College in the Class of 1841, and immediately after- 
ward passed one term at the Law School in Cambridge. He 
then entered the office of the Honorable Charles Jarvis 
Holmes, of Taunton, and soon afterward the office of Timothy 
Gardner Coffin, Esq., of New Bedford, under whom he com- 
pleted his professional studies. He was admitted to the bar 
at Taunton, in March, 1844, and during the next month began 
the practice of law at Pawtucket, which at that time came 
within the limits of Massachusetts. In the year 1858 he gave 



86 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

up his profession to take charge of the affairs of the Dunnell 
Manufacturing Company, a corporation at Pawtucket then 
engaged in the business of calico-printing. In i860 he was 
made Treasurer of the company, holding the office until June, 
1 88 1, when he resigned the trust and returned to the practice 
of law, where his younger son Claude Joseph Farnsworth is 
now associated with him in business. During the years 1875, 
1876, 1877, and 1880 he was a member of the Rhode Island 
House of Representatives. 

On February 27, 1851, Mr. Farnsworth was married to 
Marianna, daughter of Joseph and Ann (Mayberry) Mclntire, 
of North Providence, Rhode Island ; and they have had three 
children, two boys and a girl. The eldest son, John Prescott 
Farnsworth, graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1881. 

In the year 1862, by an agreement between the Common- 
wealth of Massachusetts and the State of Rhode Island, with 
the consent of Congress, the boundary line of these two 
States was so changed that the town of Pawtucket fell within 
the limits of Rhode Island. From that time, without a 
change of residence, Mr. Farnsworth lost his citizenship in 
Massachusetts. 

Luther Fitch was a son of Zechariah and Sibyl (Lakin) 
Fitch, and born at Groton, on January 28, 1783. He re- 
ceived his early education at Groton Academy, and graduated 
at Dartmouth College in the Class of 1807. Afterward he 
read law for eight months in the office of Dudley Chase, Esq., 
of Randolph, Vermont, and then under the instruction of 
Judge Samuel Dana, and of Judge William M. Richardson, 
both of Groton, where he completed his professional studies. 
Judge Richardson had been a teacher at the Academy, who 
in part had prepared him for college. Mr. Fitch was ad- 
mitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 18 10, and during 
the next year he began the practice of his profession in the 
village of Saccarappa, situated then in that part of Falmouth, 
District of Maine, which is now Westbrook. In 1820, on the 
admission of Maine as a State, he was appointed Attorney 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 87 

for the County of Cumberland by Governor King ; and in 
1825, on the organization of a Municipal Court in Portland, 
he was made the first judge. Soon afterward he took up his 
abode in that city in order to be near the field of his labors. 
As a judge, he was faithful and conscientious, and his deci- 
sions were always well considered and sound. The best 
tribute to his judicial career is found in the fact that during 
a period of twenty-nine years he held the office by successive 
appointments, through all the changes of political adminis- 
tration, until 1854, when he retired from the bench, at the 
age of seventy-one years. 

On June 23, 18 16, Judge Fitch was married to Almira, 
daughter of Andrew Phillips and Mary (Dole) Titcomb, of 
Falmouth; and they had a family of three sons and five 
daughters, who were all living at the date of the father's 
death. At that time one of the sons was a surgeon in the 
army, and another a physician in California ; and four of the 
daughters were married and residing in Maine. Judge Fitch 
died in Portland, on August 15, 1870, full of honors and full 
of years ; and a notice of him in the " Portland Daily Press," 
August 17, ends with the following paragraph : — 

He has gone clown to the grave at a ripe old age, loved and 
honored by all who knew him, without an enemy on earth, and in 
full hope of a glorious resurrection. 

Eugene Fuller was the eldest son and second child of the 
Honorable Timothy and Margaret (Crane) Fuller, and born at 
Cambridge, on May 14, 181 5. He received his early education 
in the schools of Cambridge, and graduated at Harvard College 
in the Class of 1834. In June, 1833, his father removed from 
Cambridge to Groton, where he had bought the Judge Dana 
estate, a farm of fifty acres situated near the northerly end of 
Farmers' Row. On January 2, 1835, Eugene entered the 
Harvard Law School, remaining one term, and after that he 
continued the study of his profession under the instruction of 
Mr. Farley at Groton. He was admitted to the Middlesex 
bar in June, 1839, and immediately afterward opened an office 
in Charlestown, where he remained for two years. He then 



88 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

went to New Orleans, and became connected with the public 
press of that city. While residing at the South, two or three 
years before his death, he suffered from a sunstroke, which 
resulted in a softening of the brain, which came very near 
being fatal, and left him in a shattered condition. His friends 
were hopeful that medical treatment elsewhere might benefit 
him ; and with that end in view he embarked with an attendant 
aboard the "Empire City " for New York. When one day out 
from New Orleans, his attendant being prostrated with sea- 
sickness, he was left alone and not afterward seen. He must 
have been lost overboard from the steamer, on June 21, 1859. 

On May 31, 1845, Mr. Fuller was married at New Orleans 
to Mrs. Anna Eliza Rotta, of that city, though originally of 
Philadelphia ; and they had a family of three sons and two 
daughters. 

Richard Fuller was the fourth son of the Honorable 
Timothy and Margaret (Crane) Fuller, and born at Cambridge 
on May 15, 1824. In the summer of 1833 his father's family 
removed to Groton, where he was prepared for college mainly 
by his eldest sister Margaret, afterward famous as a writer ; 
and he graduated at Harvard College with high rank in the 
Class of 1844. He began to study law in the office of Wendell 
Thornton Davis, Esq., at Greenfield, and then on March 3, 
1845, entered the Harvard Law School, where he remained two 
terms. He finished his course of professional studies in the 
office of his uncle Henry Holton Fuller, Esq., of Boston, and 
was admitted to the Suffolk bar on December 22, 1846. Fur 
two years afterward he was associated with his uncle as a 
partner, and at the end of that time he opened an office at No. 
10 State Street, Boston, in which city he continued to practise 
his profession during the remainder of his life. He died at 
his residence in Wayland, on May 30, 1869, after an illness 
of four weeks' duration. 

Mr. Fuller was married, at Canton, on February 6, 1849, 
first, to Sarah Kolloch, daughter of Francis and Sarah 
(Kolloch) Batchelder, of Canton, who died at Wayland, on 
January 10, 1856, aged 26 years ; and, at Wayland, on March 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON 89 

31, 1857, secondly, to Adeline Rutter, daughter of Walter 
and Elmira (Griffin) Reeves. 

John Gove was the eldest child of Dr. Jonathan and Mary 
(Hubbard) Gove, and born at Groton, on February 17, 1 77 1 . 
According to the church records, he was baptized on June 2 
of the following summer. His father was born in that part of 
Weston which is now Lincoln, and was a graduate of Harvard 
College in the Class of 1768 ; and his mother was a native of 
Groton. John graduated at Dartmouth College in the Class of 
1793, having probably pursued his preparatory studies under 
the tuition of the Reverend Dr. Chaplin, of Groton, who at 
that period fitted young men for college. He read law with the 
Honorable William Gordon, of Amherst, New Hampshire, and 
practised at Goffstown in that State, until about the year 
1800, when he removed to Chillicothe, Ohio, where he died 
in 1802. He was never married. 

All my efforts to find the exact date of Mr. Gove's death 
have proved unavailing. The Honorable Rodney M. Stimson, 
Librarian of Marietta College, writes me, under date of Janu- 
ary 8, 1892: — 

At Columbus [Ohio], Col. John C. Entrekin, of Chillicothe, told 
me that he had searched every source thoroughly for information 
about John Gove, and had failed to find any trace that such a man 
ever lived there. The name does not appear in the Journals of the 
Court, and there is no record whatever that any such lawyer was 
ever in Chillicothe. 

Samuel Lawrence Graves is a son of John Jackson and 
Lucy (Pollard) Graves, and was born at Groton, on July 18, 1847. 
He pursued his preparatory studies at Lawrence Academy, and 
graduated at Amherst College in the Class of 1870. Immedi- 
ately after his graduation he began the study of law in the 
office of Wood (Nathaniel) and Torrey (George) at Fitch- 
burg, and was admitted to the bar in January, 1873. Since 
that time he has lived in Fitchburg, where he has been en- 
gaged in the successful practice of his profession. While 
taking a deep interest in politics and city affairs, he has rarely 



90 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

accepted public office, though he served on the School Board 
from the year 1874 to 1879 inclusive. On December 2, 1890, 
as the candidate of the Citizens' Temperance party, he was 
chosen Mayor of the city, and re-chosen the next year, which 
position he holds at the present time. 

On December 5, 1878, he was married to Mary Elizabeth, 
daughter of James Batcheller and Abby Esther (Merriam) 
Lane, of Fitchburg. 

Harris Cowdrey Hartwell was a son of Benjamin 
Franklin and Emma (Whitman) Hartwell, and born at 
Groton, on December 28, 1847. His mother was a daughter 
of Dr. Charles Whitman, of Stow. He fitted for college at 
Lawrence Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1869. He studied law under the tuition of the 
Honorable Amasa Norcross, and was admitted to the bar at 
Fitchburg in November, 1872, when he associated himself 
with his instructor under the style of Norcross and Hart- 
well. He served on the School Board during the years 1874, 
1875, 1876, and 1877, and was city solicitor of Fitchburg 
from 1877 to 1886; a member of the House of Represen- 
tatives in 1883, 1884, and 1885 ; and a member of the Senate 
in 1887, 1888, and 1889. During his last term in the Senate 
he was chosen, by a unanimous vote, President of that body. 
In 1885 he was chairman of the Judiciary Committee, on the 
part of the House, and in 1887 and 1888 Chairman of the 
Judiciary Committee on the part of the Senate. After a short 
illness he died in Fitchburg of rheumatic fever complicated 
with pneumonia, on December 9, 1891. 

On October 23, 1877, Mr. Hartwell was married to Effie 
Frances Marion, daughter of Colonel Daniel and Caroline 
Augusta (Hall) Needham, of Groton; and there is one son, 
Norcross Needham, born on December 15, 1880. 

Amos Kendall was a son of Deacon Zebedee and Molly 
( Dakin) Kendall, and born at Dunstable, on August 16, 1787. 
His father had nine sons, of whom six grew to manhood, and all 
were living in the year 1858. Amos passed his boyhood on a 
farm doing hard work, though from an early period in his life 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 91 

he showed a marked fondness for books. He fitted for college 
partly at New Ipswich Academy and partly at Groton Acad- 
emy, at that time under the preceptorship of Caleb Butler. 
On September 16, 1807, after an examination by Professor 
John Hubbard, then on a visit at Groton, with five other 
young men, he was admitted a member of the Freshman 
class of Dartmouth College. In his Freshman year he 
"chummed" with Thomas Champney Gardner, a former 
schoolmate at the Academy. During his college course he 
taught school for several winters in his native town, and he 
graduated at Dartmouth in 181 1 with the highest honors of 
his class. On the fourth day of the following September as 
a law-student he entered the office of the Honorable William 
M. Richardson, of Groton, at that time postmaster of the 
town. Occasionally it devolved on him to receive and make 
up the mails as well as to deliver the letters and newspapers, 
and here he acquired his first knowledge of postal duties. 
His first political vote was thrown at Groton in March, 18 13 
a time when a property qualification was needed in this 
Commonwealth ; and as he lacked the necessary amount, the 
sum was made up to him for the time being by Mr. Richard- 
son, and immediately afterward returned to the rightful owner. 
Of this transaction he wrote in his journal : " If I had had 
time for reflection, I know not what I should have done under 
the circumstances ; but I am satisfied I ought to have 
declined." 

In the early part of 1814 Mr. Kendall left Groton for the 
distant West, and became a private tutor to Henry Clay's 
children ; but as it is not my purpose to trace his career in 
detail, I shall content myself with the briefest allusion to 
his public life. He was Postmaster-General under Presidents 
Jackson and Van Buren during the years 183 5-1 840. He 
afterward bought a large tract of land, two miles east of the 
Capitol in Washington, which became known as Kendall 
Green, and here he built a fine residence. He spent the later 
years of his life in works of charity and deeds of beneficence, 
and died at his home, surrounded by his family, on November 
12, 1869. 



92 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Mr. Kendall received the degree of LL.D. from Dartmouth 
College in 1849; and he was well entitled to the distinction, 
as his public and private life always reflected credit on his 
Alma Mater. While living at Groton, during his younger 
days, one of those romantic attachments happened, which is 
apt to occur between two young people, and he became en- 
gaged ; but for reasons satisfactory to the persons most 
interested, and equally honorable to both sides, the affair was 
broken off. For other particulars, see " The Autobiography 
of Amos Kendall " (pages 86-90). Mr. Kendall's youngest 
son, John, was married to a lady of Groton; and at one time 
a widowed daughter was a resident of the town. 

On October 1, 181 8, Mr. Kendall was married, first, to Mary 
Bullard, daughter of William Woolfolk, of Jefferson County, 
Kentucky, who died in Frankfort, on October 13, 1823 ; and, 
on January 5, 1826, secondly, to Jane, daughter of Alexander 
Kyle, of Georgetown, Kentucky. By these two marriages 
there were fourteen children, five sons and nine daughters, of 
whom all the sons and several daughters are now dead. 

Rufus Bigelow Lawrence was an only son and the 
youngest child of the Honorable Luther and Lucy (Bigelow) 
Lawrence, and born at Groton, on July 13, 1814. He pursued 
his preparatory studies at Groton Academy, and at Stow Acad- 
emy, then recently organized, and under the preceptorship 
of Jacob Caldwell, and he graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1834. According to the annual catalogues of that 
institution, he first entered college in 1829, with the Class of 
1833, where he remained for two years. His name then drops 
out of the list, and at the end of another two years it appears 
among the Seniors in the Class of 1834. He studied law in 
his father's office, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
December, 1837. In the year 1839 he opened an office in 
Boston, and had every promise of success in his profession ; but 
his health soon failed him, and he died of consumption at Pau, 
in the south of France, on January 13, 1841. It is stated in 
the " Memorials of the Class of 1834" (Boston, 1884) : — 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 93 

He had a handsome person,- sweet disposition and pleasant and 
graceful manners. These qualities gained him many friends and 
made him a general favorite (page 5). 

James Lewis was a son of James and Lucy (Crosby) 
Lewis, and born at Billerica, on February 1, 1785. His 
father's family removed to Groton when he was eleven years 
old, and he fitted for college at Groton Academy. He gradu- 
ated at Dartmouth College in the year 1807, in the same 
class with Luther Fitch and William Nutting, both natives of 
Groton, who are mentioned in this Account. He studied law 
in the office of the Honorable Samuel Dana, of Groton, and in 
1 8 10 began the practice of his profession at Marlborough, 
where he remained two years. In May, 181 2, he removed to 
Pepperell, which town he afterward represented in the House 
of Representatives during the sessions of 1827, 1830, and 
1834; and he was also a member of the State Senate during 
•1828 and 1829. 

On January 17, 18 19, Mr. Lewis was married to Harriet, 
daughter of Samuel and Submit (Gilson) Parker, of Pepperell. 
He continued to reside at Pepperell during the remainder of 
his life, though he died in Boston, on February 6, 1845. He 
was the father of Samuel Parker Lewis, whose sketch has 
already been given in these pages. 

Rufus Livermore was a son of Daniel and Abigail 
(Tuck) Livermore, and born at Groton, on November 1, 
1839. He pursued his preparatory studies at Lawrence 
Academy, and, in the autumn of 1859, entered the Freshman 
class of Williams College, but remained there only one year. 
When the War of the Rebellion broke out, he enlisted in 
Company B of the Sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Militia, 
which made the memorable march through Baltimore on 
April 19, 1 861. Subsequently, after the return of that regi- 
ment, he again enlisted in the Third Rhode Island Cavalry, 
Troop C, — of which company he became a sergeant, — and 
on October 13, 1863, was mustered into the United States 
service. On March 25, 1864, he was commissioned as Second 



94 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Lieutenant, and as such mustered into the service June 15, 
doing duty in Troop L of that regiment. On March 20, 
1865, he resigned his commission and was honorably dis- 
charged. He attended lectures at the Law School, Albany, 
New York, where he was admitted to the bar in the autumn 
of 1862. After the war he went to Orange, and became 
interested in the firm which at a later period was known as 
the Rodney Hunt Machine Company of that town. In poli- 
tics he was a Republican, and had served in the General 
Court during the session of 1879, and in the Senate during 
the sessions of 1883 and 1884. He was a prominent member 
of the Congregational Church, and for many years superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school. He was also connected with a 
post of the Grand Army of the Republic. He died at Orange 
on July 8, 1891, leaving a widow and two daughters. 

On January 22, 1863, Mr. Livermore was married to Martha 
Elizabeth, daughter of Jehiel and Melissa (Hildreth) Todd, 
of Worcester. 

David McGregor Means is an only son of the Reverend 
James and Elizabeth Phebe (Johnson) Means, and was born 
at Groton, on May 1, 1847. His father was then the principal 
of Lawrence Academy; and the family removed from town in 
the year 1854. He fitted for college at Phillips Academy, An- 
dover, and graduated at Yale College in the Class of 1862. 
He passed two years (1872- 1874) at the Theological Semi- 
nary, Andover, and a third year (1 874-1 875) at the Yale 
Theological Seminary, but was never ordained in the minis- 
try. From January, 1877, to the summer of 1880, he was 
the Professor of Mental and Moral Science in Middlebury 
College. He studied law in the city of New York, where he 
was admitted to the bar in May, 1882, and where since that 
time he has been in practice, though his place of residence is 
Summit, New Jersey. 

On April 5, 1877, Mr. Means was married in Philadelphia 
to Laura Haven, daughter of Charles Edward and Ann 
(Earp) Haven; and they have two daughters, Margaret 
Appleton Means and Elinor Haven Means. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 95 

Leonard Mellen was the eldest child of Major Thomas 
and Eunice ( ) Mellen, and born at Hopkinton, on 

August 1 8, 1776. He graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1797, and on January 23, 1798, was appointed Pre- 
ceptor of Groton Academy, where he remained more than a 
year. He studied law and was admitted to the Middlesex 
bar in September, 1800. He went into practice at Charles- 
town ; but his professional career was short, as he died at 
Concord while attending the Court, on September 18, 1804. 
An obituary notice of him appears in the " New-England 
Palladium " (Boston), September 25, and also in the "Colum- 
bian Centinel " (Boston), September 26, 1804. 

William Nutting was a son of William and Susanna 
(French) Nutting, and born at Groton, on October 30, 1779. 
He pursued his preparatory studies at Groton Academy, and 
graduated with honor at Dartmouth College in the Class of 
1807. Immediately after graduation he was offered a tutor- 
ship at the college, which he declined, as he preferred to take 
the position of principal of the Orange County Grammar 
School or Academy at Randolph, Vermont, then just estab- 
lished. At a later period his brother Rufus, a graduate of 
Dartmouth in the Class of 18 14, was the Principal of this 
school for eleven years. In this institution William held the 
mastership for six years (1 807-181 3), and, meanwhile, he 
was engaged in the study of law under the instruction of 
the Honorable Dudley Chase, of Randolph, whose partner he 
afterward became. In 18 13 he began the practice of his pro- 
fession in that town, where his ability and integrity soon gave 
him a high position at the bar. He was postmaster of 
Randolph from the year 1810 to 1816; a member of the 
Vermont Legislature during 181 7, 18 18, and 1819, and a 
member of the Council of Censors from March, 1820, to 
March, 1821, and State's Attorney for Orange County from 
1823 to 1829. Mr. Nutting was a great reader, and in the 
latter years of his life read the Bible through in course a 
large number of times; and he always had at hand some 
favorite Latin or Greek classic, which he seemed to enjoy as 



g6 I III LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

much as he did in his younger days. He died at Randolph, 
on November 26, 1863. 

On October 5, 1809, Mr. Nutting was married at Groton to 
Mary Barrett, daughter of David and Mary (Barrett) Hub- 
bard, of Concord, who died on September 7, 1847, aged sixty- 
one years. By this marriage there were eight children. 

Benjamin Kinsman Phelps was an only child of the Rev- 
erend Dudley and Ann (Kinsman) Phelps, and born at 
Haverhill, on September 16, 1832. The family removed to 
Groton in the autumn of 1836, when the father was installed 
over the Union Congregational Church. The son pursued his 
preparatory studies at Lawrence Academy, and graduated at 
Yale College in the Class of 1853. Soon after his graduation 
he made a trip around the world, and, on his return, studied 
law, first, with his relative, Benjamin M. Farley, Esq., of 
Hollis, New Hampshire, and then in New York City. In 
July, 1856, he was admitted to the bar at Poughkeepsie, New 
York, and during the same year began the practice of his 
profession in New York. He soon entered into partner- 
ship with his classmate Knevals, and so continued until 
1866, when he became Assistant District Attorney of the 
United States for the Southern District of New York. He 
kept this office until 1870, when he returned to private prac- 
tice, and became a partner of the late President Arthur, a 
connection which lasted for ten years. In November, 1872, 
he was chosen District Attorney of the city and county of 
New York, receiving the support of the Republicans and of 
the " Committee of Seventy," which represented the citizens' 
movement, organized to oppose the "Tweed Ring." At the 
end of his three years' term of office he was re-elected to the 
same position upon a fusion ticket made up of Republicans 
and Independent Democrats, receiving a majority of about 
twenty-seven thousand votes. For a third time he was 
chosen upon a similar ticket in 1S78, and continued in office 
until his death, which occurred from internal hemorrhage, on 
December 30, 1880. 

In his professional career Mr. Phelps proved himself a 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 97 

lawyer of great ability and judgment, while those who best 
knew him appreciated equally the strength and nobleness of 
his character. For many years the writer of these lines sat 
at school in the same class with him, and recited from the 
same bench, and they were as intimate as two boys ever are ; 
and yet in the lapse of time, living in different cities and fol- 
lowing different professions, they drifted apart never to meet. 
No scholar at the Academy in my time left a pleasanter mem- 
ory than Ben Phelps. 

On October 21, 1857, Mr. Phelps was married to Anna 
Maria, daughter of the Honorable Julius and Mary (Fisher) 
Catlin, of Hartford, Connecticut ; and there have been three 
children, two daughters and a son, Dudley, who graduated at 
Yale College in the Class of 1883. Mrs. Phelps died after a 
long illness, on December 20, 1880, ten clays before her hus- 
band, who was already ill, and unable to withstand the shock 
caused by her death. 

Dudley Farley Phelps is an only son of the Rev- 
erend Dudley and Lucretia Gardner (Farley) Phelps, of 
Groton, and was born in the house of his grandfather Farley, 
at Hollis, New Hampshire, on August 8, 1845. His father 
was the minister of the Union Congregational Church at 
Groton, where he died on September 24, 1849; and soon 
afterward his mother removed to her father's home at Hollis. 
The son was educated at Norwich University, Vermont, where 
he took the degree of S.B. in the Class of 1864, and also at 
the Harvard Law School, where he took the degree of LL.B. 
in 1867. On March 5, 1864, he was commissioned as First 
Lieutenant in the Twentieth Regiment, United States Col- 
ored Infantry, and served until that regiment was mustered 
out, on October 7, 1865. After graduating at the Harvard 
Law School he continued his professional studies in the office 
of the late President Arthur at New York, and was admitted 
to the bar by the General Term of the Supreme Court for the 
First Judicial District of New York in December, 1869. 
Subsequently he was appointed Assistant United States At- 
torney for the Southern District of New York, in which posi- 



98 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

tion he remained for three years. Later he was made Chief 
Law Officer of the New York Custom-House, and served in 
that capacity during General Chester Alan Arthur's term as 
Collector. He subsequently served as Assistant District 
Attorney of the County of New York, after which he re- 
sumed private practice until the year 1889, when, under 
Collector Erhardt, he again became Law Officer of the 
Custom-House, which place he now holds. 

On November 16, 1872, Mr. Phelps was married in Bos- 
ton to Louisa Lander, daughter of Dr. William Henry and 
Elizabeth Lucretia Bullard (Parker) Prince, of Salem ; and 
they have four children, — two boys named Dudley Farley 
and William Henry, and two girls named Katherine Elizabeth 
and Louisa Lander. 

Samuel Jackson Prescott was the youngest son of Dr. 
Oliver and Lydia (Baldwin) Prescott, and born at Groton, on 
March 15, 1773. He pursued his preparatory studies at 
Phillips Academy, Andover, and graduated at Harvard Col- 
lege in the Class of 1795. He studied law in the office of his 
cousin, the Honorable William Prescott, of Boston ; but soon 
after his admission to the bar, on account of a partial deafness, 
he gave up the practice of his profession. He then became 
engaged in business at Boston, where he was associated with 
Aaron P. Cleaveland, under the style of Prescott and Cleave- 
land ; but owing to the embargo of 1807 and the political 
troubles of that period, the firm met with failure. Mr. Pres- 
cott had a natural taste for genealogical and statistical in- 
vestigations ; and he prepared an index to the triennial 
catalogue of Harvard College, which was first published in 
the catalogue of 1830. For more than thirty years he was 
a Notary-public for Suffolk County. To his physical infirmity 
of deafness was now added the loss of sight, and his in- 
tellectual faculties also became clouded ; and he passed the 
closing years of his life at the home of a son in Brookline, 
where he received every care which filial affection could 
bestow, and where he died on October 7, 1857. 

On November 13, 1804, Mr. Prescott was married to Mar- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 99 

garet, daughter of Major Joseph and Margaret (Cleveland) 
Hiller, of Salem ; and they had five children, two sons and 
three daughters. Mrs. Prescott was born on July 29, 1775, 
and died on August 4, 1841. 

William Haughton Richards was the eldest son of Henry 
Augustus and Julia Augusta (Haughton) Richards, and born 
at Uncasville, a village in Montville, Connecticut, on June 5 
1825. In April, 1841, his father's family removed to Groton 
from New York City, and during the same year the son was 
attending school at Groton Academy, where he pursued his 
preparatory studies. He graduated at Yale College in the 
Class of 1850 with the highest honors, and passed the next 
two years at Cincinnati, Ohio, engaged in teaching, and at 
the same time studying law. He was admitted to the bar in 
June, 1852, and during the following November opened an 
office in New York City. In the autumn of 1853 his health 
became impaired, and for a year or so he continued to be an 
invalid. In April, 1855, he was again taken ill, and died 
suddenly in Brooklyn, New York, on May 17, 1855. Mr. 
Richards was a brilliant scholar, and while in college took 
several prizes for proficiency in various departments. 

Norman Seaver was the younger son of Heman and 
Elizabeth (Weeks) Seaver, and born at Groton, April 7, 
1802. His father at that time lived in the house which, by 
considerable enlargement, was afterward made into Emer- 
son's tavern. It stood near the site of Milo H. Shattuck's 
store, and was opened as a public house about the year 181 2. 
While Norman was very young, the family removed to Mon- 
treal ; and here the son pursued his preparatory studies, 
entering first at Middlebury College, where he remained one 
year, and immediately afterward took a four years' course at 
Harvard College, graduating in the Class of 1822. He then 
began the study of law in the office of the Honorable Luther 
Lawrence at Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar 
in October, 1827. He was an attorney-at-law in Boston as 
early as 1826, according to the City Directory for that year. 

tore 



IOO THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

He was a member of the Common Council from Ward No. 9 
in 1828, when the Honorable John P. Bigelow was a colleague 
from the same ward. Owing to ill-health, about the year 1834, 
he gave up his profession and became engaged in mercantile 
business at Boston, where he was a member of the house of 
Stone, Seaver, and Bush ; but he never fully regained his 
strength. He died in St. Louis, Missouri, on May 12, 1838, 
while travelling for his health. 

On December 1, 1829, Mr. Seaver was married to Anna 
Maria, eldest child of the Honorable Luther and Lucy 
(Bigelow) Lawrence, of Groton. Mrs. Seaver was born in 
the house at the north corner of Main and School Streets, 
only a short distance from the birthplace of her husband. 
She is now living, at an advanced age, in Rutland, Vermont, 
on Main Street, or the " Great Road," which is the same 
thoroughfare that passes under the same name through the 
village of Groton, leading from Boston to Northern Vermont 
and Canada. 

Ether Shepley was the second son of John and Mary 
(Gibson | Therlow) Sheple, and born at Groton, on Novem- 
ber 2, 1789. His given name was taken from the Old Testa- 
ment (Joshua xix. 7), and in Hebrew means " a stone." The 
surname was originally written Sheple, though pronounced 
Shepley. He prepared for college at Groton Academy ; and 
many years later, under date of July 1, 1854, he wrote to his 
old friend and schoolmate, Abbott Lawrence, of the advan- 
tages he derived from that school during his boyhood, and 
of the benefits accruing to other lads, like himself, living in 
the neighborhood. After graduating at Dartmouth College 
in the Class of 181 1, he began the study of law in the office 
of Dudley Hubbard, Esq., at South Berwick, Maine, where he 
continued for two years. Subsequently he returned to Mas- 
sachusetts, and passed several months in studying his chosen 
profession under the guidance, successively, of Zabdiel Boyl- 
ston Adams, Esq., of Lunenburg, and Solomon Strong, Esq., 
of Westminster, and was then admitted to the bar. On July 
4, 1814, he opened an office at Saco, Maine, where he soon 



THE LAWYERS OE GROTON. IOI 

established a large and lucrative practice. His natural 
talents, aided by a sterling character and close habits of 
industry, gave him a prominent place at the bar. 

When the separation of the District of Maine from the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts was a subject of public dis- 
cussion, Mr. Shepley advocated the change and was chosen 
from Saco, on that issue, a member of the House of Repre- 
sentatives, which met on May 26, 18 19. In three weeks from 
the beginning of the session he had the satisfaction to see 
the object of his wishes and labors carried by a large ma- 
jority. At this time his former townsman, Timothy Bigelow, 
was Speaker of the House, and his old friend, Luther Law- 
rence, was a member ; and they helped him in his efforts, 
so far as lay in their power. In February, 1821, he was 
appointed United States Attorney for the District Court of 
the new State, which office he held for twelve years. In 1833 
he was chosen to the United States Senate, where he was a 
strong supporter of President Jackson's administration. At 
this period his former school-fellow and classmate, Amos Ken- 
dall, was in the President's Cabinet. Mr. Shepley remained 
in the Senate until September 23, 1836, when he was given a 
seat on the bench of the Supreme Court of Maine ; and soon 
afterward he took up his abode in Portland. On October 20, 
1848, he was appointed to the position of Chief Justice, which 
he continued to hold until the autumn of 1855, — a term 
of seven years, which is the limit allowed by the State 
Constitution. 

Judge Shepley retired from the bench with his ermine un- 
sullied, and ended a long life with a spotless reputation. His 
judicial career is best shown in the twenty-seven volumes 
(XIV. -XL., inclusive) of the Maine Reports, where his de- 
cisions are found. They all are drawn up with that clearness 
and terseness which make them models of exact expression. 
On April 1, 1856, he was appointed the Commissioner to re- 
vise the public laws of Maine; and this was his last official 
service. 

In 1842 Waterville College, now Colby University, con- 
ferred upon him the degree of LL.D., and in 1845 his Alma 



102 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Mater gave him the same honorary distinction. It is worthy 
of note that ten members of his class at Dartmouth (namely, 
Andrews, Cutter, Danforth, Gardner, Kendall, Lewis, Parker, 
Rockwood, and Woodbury, besides himself) were either na- 
tives of Groton or at some time residents of the town. He 
was an Overseer of Bowdoin College from the year 1821 to 
1829, and a Trustee of the college from 1829 to 1866, making 
a continuous term of service of forty-five years. 

On June 10, 1816, Judge Shepley was married to Anne, 
daughter of George and Anne (Harback) Foster, of Hanover, 
New Hampshire ; and they had a family of five sons, among 
whom was the late George Foster Shepley, a General during 
the War of the Rebellion, and afterward a Justice of the 
Circuit Court of the First Circuit of the United States. 
Judge Ether Shepley died in Portland, on January 15, 1877. 

The Sheple homestead, where Ether and John Shepley were 
born, stood on the east side of Chicopee Row, nearly opposite 
to Noah Torrey's house, as given on Mr. Butler's Map of 
Groton, published in the year 1832. " Sheeplees Hill," 
mentioned in the town-records February 28, 1670, was un- 
doubtedly so called from the first settler of the name. It 
is a knoll in the neighborhood of Naumox. 

John Shepley was the eldest child of John and Mary 
(Gibson | Therlow) Sheple, and born at Groton, on October 
16, 1787. John Sheple, who lived at Wenham, was the an- 
cestor of the Groton family ; and John, the lawyer, was a 
lineal descendant through five generations, each bearing the 
same given name. The first settler and all his family, ex- 
cept a son John, were massacred by the Indians on July 27, 
1694. The son was kept in captivity for three years and a 
half, and afterward came back to his native town, where he 
held many offices of trust and responsibility, both civil and 
ecclesiastical. John, whose name stands at the head of this 
paragraph, pursued his preparatory studies at Groton Acad- 
emy, under the instruction of Mr. Butler, and, in the summer 
of 1804, entered Harvard College, where he remained nearly 
four years. His name appears in four successive annual cata- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 103 

logues, and is always spelled Sheple. Unfortunately during 
the Senior year a disturbance broke out in his class, which 
resulted in the expulsion of a certain number, and he was 
among them. Immediately afterward he began the study of 
his profession in the office of the Honorable Luther Law- 
rence, of Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
September, 18 10. He established himself in practice first at 
Rutland, Worcester County, where he lived for a year or so, 
and then removed to Fitchburg, at that time a town of 
less than sixteen hundred inhabitants. While a resident of 
Fitchburg he was chosen to fill various important offices, 
which he did with credit to himself and with satisfaction to 
his constituents. He was elected on October 16, 1820, a 
member of the Convention for altering the Constitution of 
Massachusetts, which met on November 15, 1820; and he 
also served as, a member of the State Senate during the ses- 
sion of 1 82 1, and of the House of Representatives during the 
session of 1825. At the end of the year 1825 he removed to 
Saco, Maine, where he formed a law-partnership with his 
younger brother Ether. He was a reporter of the decisions 
of- the Supreme Court, found in the nineteen volumes of 
Maine Reports (XIII.-XXXI.) published between the years 
1836 and 1849. 

On September 20, 18 15, Mr. Shepley was married to Abi- 
gail Fellows, daughter of Nathaniel Fellows and Hannah 
(Adams) Cunningham, of Lunenburg; and they had a family 
of one son and two daughters. Mr. Shepley died at Saco, 
Maine, on February 9, 1857 ; and his widow at the same 
place on December 1, 1866. 

Ephraim Sherman, Jr., was a son of Ephraim and Ruth 
(Patch) Sherman, and born at East Sudbury, now Wayland, 
on May 24, 1795. He graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1 8 19, and, on September 4, 18 19, was appointed 
Preceptor of Groton Academy, where he remained for two 
years. After leaving Groton Mr. Sherman went South and 
studied law in the office of the Honorable Henry A. Bullard, 
of Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he died of yellow fever, 
unmarried, on July 10, 1822. 



104 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Frank Bainbridge Spalter is a son of John Hamilton 
and Martha Ann (Hildreth) Spalter, and was born at Groton, 
on September 3, 1845. On October 26, 1853, his father's 
family removed to Keene, New Hampshire, where the son 
studied law in the office of Wheeler (Wm. P.) and Faulkner 
(Francis A.). Beginning on September 11, 1869, he at- 
tended one term at the Harvard Law School, and on June 8, 
1870, was admitted to the New Hampshire bar at Newport. 
From February 1, 1870, to October 15 of the same year he 
was in the office of Henry J. Stevens, Esq., No. 19 Court 
Street, Boston; and in January, 1871, he removed to Win- 
chendon, where he entered the office of Giles H. Whitney, 
Esq., and on November 13, 1871, was admitted to the Wor- 
cester County bar, at Fitchburg. During the next year he 
formed a partnership with Mr. Whitney, which continued for 
ten years and was then dissolved. On December 27, 1882, 
he was appointed a Trial Justice, an office which he still 
holds. 

On January 1, 1881, Mr. Spalter was married to Alice 
Josephine, daughter of Sabin and Hattie (Stearns) Kelton, of 
Warwick, and a native of Worcester ; and they have one 
child, Mabel Josephine Spalter, born on July 3, 1884. 

Charles Warren Stone is the eldest child of Warren 
Fay and Mary (Williams) Stone, and was born at Groton, on 
June 29, 1843. He fitted for college at Lawrence Academy, 
and graduated at Williams College in the Class of 1863, which 
he entered at the beginning of the Sophomore year. Soon 
afterward he became Principal of the Union School at War- 
ren, Pennsylvania, a position he resigned in 1865 in order to 
accept the superintendency of schools in Warren County. In 
the autumn of the same year he was chosen Principal of the 
Academy at Erie, and in 1866 began to study law in the 
office of Judge Lansing 1). Wetmore at Warren. He was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1867, and during the next year formed 
a partnership with Judge Rasselas Brown. He has served 
several terms as a member of the Warren School Board and 
of the Borough Council. He was also chosen a member of 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 05 

the House of Representatives in 1870 and 1S71, and of the 
State Senate in 1876 from the Forty eighth District, where 
he served during the sessions of 1877 and 1878. In Novem- 
ber, 1878, he was elected Lieutenant-Governor of the Com- 
monwealth for the term ending January 16, 1883, and on 
January 18, 1887, was appointed by Governor Beaver as Secre- 
tary of the State, a position which he resigned on November 
30, 1890, in order to accept a seat in Congress. He was 
chosen as a Republican from the Twenty-seventh Pennsylva- 
nia District, by an overwhelming majority, on November 4, 
1890, to fill a vacancy in the Fifty-first Congress, caused by the 
death of the Honorable Lewis Findlay Watson, and also at 
the same time chosen a member of the Fifty-second Congress. 
On January 30, 1868, Mr. Stone was married at Meadville, 
Pennsylvania, to Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas and Rebecca 
(Barnett) Morehead, of Erie; and they have six children. 

George Fisher Stone is the youngest child of Warren 
Fay and Mary (Williams) Stone, and was born at Groton, on 
December 25, 1850. After attending school at Lawrence 
Academy, he studied law in the office of George Stevens, 
Esq., of Lowell, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
February, 1874. He practised his profession for four years 
at Hudson, and in 1878 removed to Bradford, Pennsylvania, 
where four years later he became Superintendent of Public 
Schools, a position which he held for five years. He left 
Bradford in 1888, and passed the next three years, for the 
most part, in Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, and in North Caro- 
lina. In the spring of 1891 he removed to Olympia, Wash- 
ington, where he resumed the practice of law, and is now 
living. 

On December 25, 1872 (his birthday), Mr. Stone was mar- 
ried to Emma Cecilia Branch, daughter of the Reverend Jere- 
miah Knight and Sarah (Hamer) Aldrich, of Groton. 

Rufus Barrett Stone is the second son of Warren Fay 
and Mary (Williams) Stone, and was born at Groton, on 
November 24, 1847. He pursued his preparatory studies at 

1 1 



106 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

Lawrence Academy and took a partial course of one year at 
Williams College. In the annual catalogue of that institution 
for 1 867-1 868, published in the autumn of 1867, his name 
appears in the Junior Class ; but owing to a domestic bereave- 
ment, he was compelled to sever his connection with the 
college. In the year 1869 he entered the United States 
Internal Revenue service as chief clerk of the Assessor of the 
Thi r d District of Mississippi ; and later, as Assistant Asses- 
sor and Deputy Collector of the same District, he passed 
through the varied experiences incident to the performance 
of duties connected with such an office, during the days of 
Southern reconstruction. While so engaged, he began the 
study of law, and in 1872 was admitted to the bar at Her- 
nando, De Soto County, Mississippi. Having resigned from 
the United States service, he entered upon the practice of his 
profession at Okolona, in partnership with Francis Sweeney 
Pate, Esq., a native of that State and a former District At- 
torney for the county. In the ensuing year Mr. Stone held 
the appointment of United States Commissioner for the 
Northern District of Mississippi. In 1873 he was appointed 
Chancellor of the Seventeenth Chancery District, composed of 
four counties, and six months later was unanimously confirmed 
by the United States Senate. Of his decisions only one has 
been reversed, although several were mooted in the news- 
papers and published at length, especially one relating to 
Confederate money as a contract consideration, and another 
relating to the Statute of Limitations as affected by the Civil 
War. During his residence in Mississippi he warmly es- 
poused the cause of the Republican party, and was actively 
interested in the question of reconstruction, which rendered 
him unpopular with the lawless element of the opposition, 
lie was abused in many ways and repeatedly assaulted, and 
often his life was in danger. In 1876 he resigned the Chan- 
cellorship and removed to Bradford, Pennsylvania, where he 
became prominent in the affairs of the city and county. In 
1882 he received a unanimous Republican nomination for 
Mayor, but was defeated through the intervention of an inde- 
pendent candidate. Mr. Stone's sympathies are broad, and 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 107 

in many ways and on many occasions his public services have 
been conspicuous. He is still actively engaged in profes- 
sional work, though his business relations are by no means 
confined to legal practice. 

On April 18, 1872, Mr. Stone was married to Margaret 
Sarah, daughter of the Reverend Burr and Cornelia Cadmus 
(Keen) Baldwin, of Newark, New Jersey, and a native of 
Ashfield in this State. 

Richard Sullivan was the third son of Governor James 
and Hetty (Odiorne) Sullivan, and born at Groton, on July 
i/, 1779- He pursued his preparatory studies at the Boston 
Latin School, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class 
of 1798, of which he was one of the most distinguished 
members. After leaving college, he studied law in the office 
of his father at Boston, and was admitted to the Suffolk bar 
in July, 1801 ; but he did not long follow the profession, as 
he had an ample competence of worldly goods. In early life 
he took much interest in political matters, and on April 3, 
18 1 5, and the two following years, was chosen, from Suffolk 
County, a member of the State Senate; on October 16, 1820, 
chosen, from Brookline, a delegate to the Convention for 
altering the Constitution of Massachusetts, which met on 
November 15 of that year; and a member of the Executive 
Council during 1820 and 1821. In 1823 he was the candidate 
of the Federal party for Lieutenant-Governor of the State, the 
Honorable Harrison Gray Otis being the candidate for Gover- 
nor ; but the ticket was defeated. In 1821 he was elected a 
member of the Board of Overseers of Harvard College, and 
held that office until the Board was re-organized by an Act of 
the Legislature in 1852. He was public-spirited and philan- 
thropic ; and the records of several of the most important 
public institutions in Boston and its neighborhood, founded 
during the first thirty years of the present century, bear ample 
testimony to his services in their behalf. The plan of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital was first started at a meeting 
in his house; and among those who helped to establish it, the 
labors of few were more earnest or efficient than were his 



io<S i he i. wvvr.ks ( )i ( ;ri >t<>\. 

own. He died in Cambridge, on December ir, 1861, aged 
82 years. 

On May 22, 1804, Mr. Sullivan was married to Sarah, 
daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Sever) Russell, of Boston ; 
and the issue of the marriage was four sons and four 
daughters. 

William Sullivan was the second son of Governor James 
and Hetty (Odiorne) Sullivan, and born at Biddeford, Maine, 
on November 30, 1774. The father's family lived at Groton 
during the Revolutionary period, occupying a farm on the 
Lowell road, half a mile east of the First Parish Meeting-house. 
The son studied at the Boston Latin School, and also under 
the Reverend Dr. Phillips Payson, of Chelsea, graduating at 
Harvard College with the highest honors in the Class of 1792. 
He began the study of law at Boston in the office of his father, 
then the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth, and was 
admitted to the Suffolk bar in 1795. A man of brilliant tal- 
ents, he warmly espoused the side of the Federalists, while 
his father was equally the advocate of the Republicans. 
This difference of political opinion at one time caused some 
hard feeling between them, though finally the best of rela- 
tions existed. He had a large practice, and many of h:s cases 
were of much importance. He was a ready writer, and his 
publications on a great variety of subjects were numerous. 
He was an early member of the Massachusetts Historical 
Society ; and in 1826 Harvard College conferred upon him 
the Doctorate of Laws. On May 9, 1804, he was chosen a 
member of the House of Representatives, and also for eleven 
subsequent years, though not successive ones, the last time 
being for 1830 ; and on April 3, 1820. he was chosen a member 
of the State Senate. On October 16, 1820, lie was elected 
a delegate to the Convention for the purpose of revising the 
Constitution of Massachusetts, which met on November 15. 
His younger brother Richard was also a member of the same 
body, chosen by the town of Brookline. 

The following paragraph in Benjamin Homer Hall's " Col- 
lection of College Words and Customs" (Cambridge, 1856) 
refers to young Sullivan while in college : — 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 109 

Exhibition, 1791. April 20th. This morning Trapier was 
rusticated and Sullivan suspended to Groton for nine months, 
for mingling tartar emetic with our commons on y L morning of 
April 1 2th (page 181). 

During his suspension at Groton Mr. Sullivan was an 
inmate of the Reverend Dr. Chaplin's family; and the late 
venerable Mrs. Rockvvood, a daughter of Dr. Chaplin, told me, 
a short time before her death, that as a little girl she remem- 
bered him, though then she was too young to know why he 
was there. She could recollect, however, that :ie was kind to 
children, and in his manners courteous to all. 

On May 19, 1802, Mr. Sullivan was married to Sarah Webb, 
daughter of Colonel James and Hepzibah (Clarke) Swan ; 
and they had a family of ten children. Mr. Sullivan died in 
Boston, on September 3, 1839; and his widow on June 9, 
1851. 

Samuel Woodbury was the eldest child of William and 
Hannah (Kelly) Woodbury, and born at Salem, New Hamp- 
shire, on December 21, 1784. His father served as a soldier 
in the Revolutionary army, and settled at Acworth, New 
Hampshire, in 1789. The son graduated at Dartmouth 
College in the Class of 181 1, and, on September 4, 181 1, was 
appointed preceptor of Groton Academy, where he remained 
for one year. He then entered the office of the Honorable 
William M. Richardson, and later the office of the Honorable 
Luther Lawrence, both of Groton, where he read law, and 
was admitted to the Middlesex bar in June, 181 5. He began 
the practice of his profession in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 
but soon gave up his calling, and studied divinity under the 
tuition of the Reverend Francis Brown, D.D., President of 
Dartmouth College. He was ordained pastor of the Congre- 
gational Church at North Yarmouth, Maine, on November 5, 
181 7, but after a settlement of less than two years, owing 
to ill health, was obliged to resign his charge. He then 
returned to Groton, where he died of consumption at the 
home of his wife, on July 6, 18 19, to the great grief of a 
wide circle of friends. 



I 10 I 111". LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

On July 28, 1818, Mr. Woodbury was married to Mary, 
daughter of Major Samuel and Susanna (Parker) Lawrence, 
of Groton. An only child, Sarah Lawrence Woodbury, was 
born two months after her father's death ; and she married on 
March 10, 1 841, the late Reverend David Fosdick, and died 
at Groton on November 25, i860, leaving a family of children, 
of whom the Honorable Frederick Fosdick, formerly Mayor 
of Fitchburg, is the youngest son. 

Noah Woods was a son of Jonas and Eunice (Lakin) 
Woods, and born at Groton, on September 26, 181 1. In the 
autumn of 18 16 his mother died, and the next year he went to 
Baldwin, Maine, and lived with an uncle William Fitch, whose 
wife was his father's sister. Here he worked on a farm, and, 
as he grew older, was much engaged in logging and lumbering 
in that part of Baldwin which is now Sebago. The first boat 
which passed through the Cumberland and Oxford Canal, 
opened in 1830, and leading from Lake Sebago to Portland 
Harbor, belonged to his uncle ; and Noah was employed on 
board as one of the hands. For two years he was engaged 
in boating on this canal during the open season, when he 
saved money enough to pay for some schooling. In the 
autumn of 1832 he entered the Academy at North Bridgton, 
Maine, where he remained for a short time and then taught 
a district school, lie was also a scholar at the Academy 
again during the years 1834-1836, and in the spring of 1838 
began the study of law in the office of Charles Washburn, 
Esq., of Harrison, and afterward in the office of the Honorable 
John Searle Tenney,of Norridgewock. In the spring of 1841 
he was admitted to the bar of Somerset County, at which 
time he opened an office at Gardiner. When that town be- 
came a city in 1850, he was chosen the President of the 
Common Council and the City Solicitor during the first year 
of its municipal existence. In March, 1854, he was elected 
Mayor, and re-elected for the four following years, and again 
in 1 86 1 and the next two years, making a service of eight 
years as Chief Magistrate of Gardiner. It is recorded in the 
" Proceedings at the Re-union of the Alumni of Bridgton 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. Ill 

Academy, held at North Bridgeton, Me., July 12th, 1882," 
that : — 

He was for a long time Superintendent of the public schools of 
Gardiner, and by his efficient management raised them to a high 
standard of excellence (page 44). 

In 1862 and 1863 he was a member of the State Senate. In 
1863 he removed to Bangor, and early in 1864 was appointed 
National Bank Examiner for Maine and New Hampshire; and 
for many years he was President and Treasurer of the Euro- 
pean and North American Railway Company. 

On Commencement day at Bowdoin College in 1850, he re- 
ceived the honorary degree of A.M. from that institution. 
During the last four years of his life he was a resident of 
Fitchburg in this State, where he died on June 13, 1891, at 
the house of a niece, Mrs. Charles F. Baker. 

In February, 1844, Mr. Woods was married at Gardiner, first, 
to Sarah W., daughter of Calvin and Hannah (Blish) Ballard, 
who died in that town, on May io, 1845, aged 26 years ; on 
October 5, 1846, at Hallowell, secondly, to Harriette Elizabeth 
Blish, daughter of James, who died at Gardiner, on February 
4, 1 86 1, aged 43 years ; and on December 26, 1862, at Bangor, 
thirdly, to Mrs. Frances Ann (Curtis) Blake, daughter of 
Win slow Hincks and Zerviah Rich (Howes) Curtis, and widow 
of William Augustine Blake. There were no children by any 
of these marriages. The last wife died on August II, 1881. 

William Prescott Wright is an only son of John and 
Susanna (Prescott) Wright, and was born at Groton, on 
March 18, 1832. When he was a year old his parents re- 
moved to Worcester, where they lived until 1843, and then 
went to Lowell. In that city he attended the public schools 
and the High School, and finished his preparatory studies 
under a private instructor. He graduated at Harvard College 
in the Class of 1853, and began the study of law in the office 
of the Honorable Nathan Crosby, of Lowell. He attended the 
Harvard Law School for two terms in 185 5-1 856, and was 
admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1856, though he 



112 II IK LAW \ ERS OF GROTON. 

never practised his profession. Soon afterward he went to 
Chicago, where he took up his residence, and became engaged 
in business as a banker. Of late years, however, owing to ill 
health, he lias retired from the active affairs of life. 

On April 7, 1858, Mr. Wright was married at Galesburgh, 
Illinois, to Lydia Abbie, daughter of John and Abigail (Hall) 
Keyser, of Lowell. 



A PARTIAL LIST 



OF 



THOSE WHO HAVE STUDIED LAW AT GROTON, 
WITH SKETCHES OF THEIR LIVES. 



Amos Allen was a son of Josiah and Sally (Pike) Allen, 
and born at Lincoln, on February ir, 1780. He graduated at 
Dartmouth College in the Class of 1808, and studied law in the 
office of Samuel Dakin, Esq., of Jaffrey, New Hampshire, and 
the Honorable William M. Richardson, of Groton. He was 
admitted to the Middlesex bar in March, 1813, and began the 
practice of his profession at Newton, where for many years he 
was postmaster. He was also postmaster for a long while at 
Newton Lower Falls. During his early life he was an active 
politician on the side of the Federal party. His death took 
place at Newton Lower Falls, on January 23, i860. 

On November 11, 1829, Mr. Allen was married to Martha 
Shattuck, daughter of Captain Peter and Rebecca (Davis) 
Parker, of Needham, who died at Newton, on July 17, 1869. 
She was a native of Boston. 

Benjamin Ames was a son of Benjamin and Phebe (Chandler) 
Ames, and born at Andover, on October 30, 1778. He gradu- 
ated at Harvard College in the Class of 1803, and-studied law 
in the office of the Honorable Samuel Dana, of Groton, in which 
town an uncle, Nathan Ames, was then living. He was ad- 
mitted to the bar in the year 1806, and at once established 
himself as an attorney in Bath, Maine, where he became dis- 
tinguished as a lawyer and politician. He " migrated from the 



114 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

school of law in Groton to the school of politics in Bath," says 
Mr. Willis, in his " History of the Law, the Courts, and the 
Lawyers of Maine " (page 501). In 1807 he was appointed by 
Governor Sullivan as attorney for Lincoln County, and in 181 1 
by Governor Gerry a Judge of the Circuit Court of Common 
Pleas. In 1820 he was chosen to the first Legislature of Maine, 
and made the Speaker of the House, a position to which 
he was re-elected for the three following years. In 1824 
he was chosen a Senator from Lincoln County, and made the 
President of the body; and in 1827 again chosen to the 
House, which was his last appearance in public life. From 
1827 to 1829 he had an office in Cincinnati, Ohio, and on one 
of his trips to the East he was stricken down by paralysis in 
Providence, Rhode Island, from which both his mind and body 
suffered. He was then taken to the home of a brother-in-law 
at Houlton, Maine, where he died on September 28, 1835. 

In April, 1809, Judge Ames was married at Andover, 
first, to Mary, daughter of Colonel Abel and Polly (Abbott) 
Boynton, of Westford, who died at Bath, on November 3, 
1 8 10; and on May 11, 18 12, at Bath, secondly, to Sally, a 
sister of his first wife. By the first marriage there was no 
issue, but by the second there were three children, a son 
and two daughters. 

William Amory was a son of Thomas Coffin and Hannah 
Rowe (Linzee) Amory, and born in Boston, on June 15, 1804. 
He pursued his preparatory studies at a boarding-school kept 
by Jacob Newman Knapp, first at Brighton and afterward at 
Jamaica Plain, and entered Harvard College as a member of 
the Class which was to graduate in 1823. His name appears 
in the four annual catalogues, but during his Senior year the 
class became involved in some difficulty with the college 
authorities, which resulted in the expulsion of more than one 
half of their number, and Mr. Amory was among them. At 
different times since this " Rebellion," as it is now called, 
thirty of these expelled members have received their degrees, 
and their names appear in the Quinquennial Catalogue. Mr. 
Amory took his first and second degrees in the year 1845. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. I I 5 

Early in the winter of 1823- 1824 he entered the office of 
the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of Groton, where he re- 
mained for five months, studying law ; and he has since writ- 
ten a charming account of his " Reminiscences of Groton 
during the years 1823 and 1824," which is printed in the first 
number of Volume I. of the Groton Historical Series. In 
1825 he went to Europe, where he passed five years in study 
and travel, and on his return resumed his professional studies 
in the office of Franklin Dexter and William Howard Gardiner, 
Esquires, who were associated together as counsellors in 
Boston. He was admitted to the Suffolk bar in October, 
1830, though he never intended to practise as a lawyer. 
While leading the life of a scholar and cultivated gentleman, 
he was connected with several large corporations, either as 
President or Treasurer. He died at his residence in Beacon 
Street, Boston, on December 9, 1888. 

On January 17, 1833, Mr. Amory was married to Anna 
Powell Grant, eldest daughter of the Honorable David and 
Miriam Clark (Mason) Sears, of Boston. 

Loammi Baldwin was the third son and fourth child of 
Loammi and Mary (Fowle) Baldwin, and born at Woburn, on 
May 16, 1780. He fitted for college at Westford Academy, 
and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1800. On 
leaving Cambridge he entered the office of the Honorable 
Timothy Bigelow, of Groton, for the study of law, and was 
admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1803. During 
the next year he established himself as a lawyer in Cambridge ; 
but the pursuit of his profession was never congenial to his 
tastes. At the end of three years he gave up his chosen call- 
ing, and began the study of civil engineering, for which he had 
a remarkable aptitude, still keeping his residence in Cambridge. 
At an early age his fondness for the mechanical arts was very 
marked, and even while in college, with his own hands, he made 
a clock, which kept excellent time, and was the wonder of his 
classmates ; and while at Groton he constructed for the town 
a fire-engine, which is still in active use. From an unsuccess- 
ful lawyer he became a distinguished engineer, whose work 



Il6 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

for the United States Government at various places is a last- 
ing monument to his professional skill. In 1835 ne was a 
member of the Executive Council, and in 1836 a Presiden- 
tial Elector on the Whig ticket, when the Electoral vote of 
Massachusetts was cast, on December 7, for Daniel Webster. 
He died at Charlestown, on June 30, 1838. 

On May 19, 1816, Mr. Baldwin was married in Boston, first, 
to Ann, daughter of George and Lydia (Pickering) Williams, 
of that city, who died on April 22, 1821 ; and on June 22, 
1828, in Charlestown, secondly, to Mrs. Catharine (Williams) 
Beckford (daughter of Samuel Williams, an American banker 
living in London, and widow of Captain Thomas Beckford), 
who died at Charlestown, on May 3, 1864. 

Francis Bassett was a son of William and Betsey (Howes) 
Bassett, and born in that part of Yarmouth now Dennis, on Sep- 
tember 9, 1786. He fitted for college at Sandwich Academy, 
and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 18 10. He 
studied law in the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of 
Groton, and afterward in the office of the Honorable Timothy 
Bigelow, at Boston, and was admitted in Boston to the Court 
of Common Pleas, on September 28, 181 3, and to the Supreme 
Judicial Court, on March 6, 18 16. He was chosen a member 
of the General Court in 1818, 1819, and 1820, and again in 1824, 
1828, and 1829 ; and he was a member of the Board of Over- 
seers of Harvard College from 1853 to 1863. In 1830 he was 
appointed Clerk of the United States Circuit Court for the 
Second Circuit, and of the United States District Court of 
Massachusetts. In 1845, having acquired a handsome com- 
petence, he resigned the clerkship and went to Europe. After 
his return he led a life of elegant ease, enjoying the best fruits 
of a cultivated taste and a fondness for literature. An inter- 
esting letter, entitled " Reminiscences of an Octogenarian," 
and written by him, is given in " The New-England Historical 
and Genealogical Register" (XXV. 370-375) for October, 1871. 
He died at his winter residence in Boston, on May 25, 1875. 

On December 8, 1858, Mr. Bassett was married to Mrs. 
Frances (Cutter) Langdon, daughter of Jacob and Miriam 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 11/ 

(Cross) Cutter, and widow of Woodbury Langdon, of Ports- 
mouth, New Hampshire. 

Abijah Bigelow was a son of Elisha and Sarah (Goodrich) 
Bigelow, and born at Westminster, on December 5, 1775. He 
graduated at Dartmouth College in the Class of 1795, and read 
law in the office of the Honorable Samuel Dana, of Groton, and 
the Honorable Samuel Dexter, of Boston. In 1798 he began 
the practice of his profession at Leominster, where he lived for 
nineteen years. He was town-clerk for five vears, and a rep- 
resentative to the General Court during the sessions of 1807, 
1808, and 1809; and on November 5, 1810, he was chosen a 
member of the Twelfth Congress of the United States, where 
he served two terms. In 1817 he removed to Worcester, and 
from that time to the year 1834 he was Clerk of the Courts 
for Worcester County; and in 1838 he was appointed a 
Master in Chancery for that county. His death took place 
in Worcester, on April 5, i860. 

On April 8, 1804, Mr. Bigelow was married to Hannah, 
daughter of the Reverend Francis and Sarah (Gibson) Gard- 
ner, of Leominster; and they had a family of nine children. 
Mrs. Bigelow died on August 21, 1857, aged 76 years and 
10 months. 

Tyler Bigelow was the youngest child of David and Deb- 
orah (Heywood) Bigelow, and born at Worcester, on August 
13, 1778. He graduated with high rank at Harvard College 
in the Class of [801, and studied law with his cousin, the 
Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton. He was admitted to 
the Middlesex bar in June, 1804, and began the practice of 
his profession at Leominster, but a few months later removed 
to Watertown, where he took high rank at the bar. He soon 
became one of the leading citizens of the town, but owing to 
increasing deafness was obliged to give up much of his busi- 
ness. His cheerfulness, however, never failed ; and to those 
who knew him intimately, he was always an agreeable friend 
and companion. He died at Watertown, on May 23, 1865. 

On November 23, 1806, Mr. Bigelow was married at Groton, 



I 1 8 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

first, to his cousin Clarissa, youngest child of Colonel Timothy 
and Anna (Andrews) Bigelow, of Worcester, who died on 
March I, 1846; and on December 15, 1847, secondly, to Mrs. 
Harriet (Lincoln) Whitney, daughter of Abraham and Nancy 
(Bigelow) Lincoln, of Worcester, and widow of Francis Whit- 
ney, of New York. She died at Watertown, on June 20, 1853, 
aged 62 years, 1 month, and 22 days. The late Honorable 
George Tyler Bigelow, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of 
Massachusetts, was a son by the first marriage. 

John Parker Bullard was a son of John and Sarah (Par- 
ker) Bullard, and born at Pepperell, on November 30, 1809. 
He attended school at Groton Academy, and graduated at 
Harvard College in the famous Class of 1829. He studied 
law in the office of George F. Farley, Esq., of Groton, and 
afterward attended the Harvard Law School, where he passed 
four terms (two in 1833, one in 1834, and the last in 1835), 
and received the degree of LL.B. in 1836. He settled at 
Clinton, Louisiana, where he died on January 29, 1845. 

On August 19, 1839, Mr. Bullard was married to Lucy 
Forbes, daughter of Lincoln and Lucy (Forbes) Brigham, 
previously of Cambridge. The marriage took place at Han- 
over, New Hampshire, according to the " Boston Daily Adver- 
tiser," August 24 of that year, where the announcement says 
that the groom was of St. Francisville, Louisiana, and the 
bride of Brooklyn, New York. 

Royal Bullard was the second son of the Reverend John 
and Elizabeth (Adams) Bullard, and born at Pepperell, on 
May 15, 1786. He pursued his preparatory studies at Groton 
Academy, and graduated in the Class of 18 10, at Yale College, 
where he took the degree of A.M. in course. He studied 
law in the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of Groton, 
and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1813 ; 
and afterward in the office of Judge Blanding, of Camden, 
South Carolina, and was admitted to the bar in Kershaw 
District, as it was then called, but now known as Kershaw 
County, where he soon gained considerable reputation as 



THE LAWYERS OF GRUTON. I 1 9 

a lawyer. After experiencing a change of heart, and be- 
coming a Christian, he felt it to be his duty to give up 
the profession of law and become a preacher of the Gospel, 
which he did in connection with the Methodist denomina- 
tion. About the year 1833 he removed from Camden to 
what was then the far West, and established himself on 
Fox River, near Newark, Kendall County, Illinois. Here, 
besides acting as a local preacher, he performed much mis- 
sionary labor, and with his own. hands built a school-house, 
where during the winter season he gave gratuitous instruc- 
tion to all who availed themselves of his kind offer. He 
also took a deep interest in agricultural pursuits, for which 
he had a natural fondness, and in many other ways did much 
to improve the condition of his neighbors. He died at his 
farm, near Newark, on December 13, 1846. 

On October 25, 1820, Mr. Bullard was married to Esther 
Lewis Murray, who was born at Camden, South Carolina, on 
November 5, 1800; and they had eight children. 

Charles Butterfield was a son of Captain Asa and 
Abiah (Colburn) Butterfield, and born at Tyngsborough, on 
December 21, 1795. He was fitted for college at VVestford 
Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1820. He was one of four members of that class who, in 
181 8, established the " Med. Fac. Society," an association in 
former years somewhat noted. He studied law, first, under 
the tuition of the Honorable Daniel Richardson, of Tyngs- 
borough, and then of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of 
Groton. After his admission to the bar, he opened an office 
at Tyngsborough, but after a few years gave up the profession 
and devoted himself to farming. In 1834 and 1835 he was 
sent from that town as a representative to the General Court. 
In 1857 he was appointed Librarian of the Middlesex Me- 
chanic Association at Lowell, where he then took up his resi- 
dence, but not for a long time. In the early part of 1858 he 
was taken down with a disease of the heart, which proved 
fatal some months later. He died, unmarried, at his former 
home in Tyngsborough, on July 26, 1858. 



120 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

William Crosby was the third child of Hezekiah and 
Lucy (Kittredge) Crosby, and born at Billerica, on June 3, 
1770. He was a younger brother of the wife of Major James 
Lewis, of Groton. At the early age of seven years, while 
playing about a cider-mill in operation, his right arm was 
caught in the machinery, and so crushed as to cripple it for 
life. This accident disqualified him for manual labor, and 
he was obliged ever after to write with his left hand, but it 
turned his attention toward a liberal education. He gradu- 
ated at Harvard College in the Class of 1794 ; and soon after 
leaving Cambridge, as a law student he entered the office of 
William Gordon, Esq., of Amherst, New Hampshire, but 
finished his studies in the office of the Honorable Samuel 
Dana, of Groton. He was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
1798, and at once opened an office at Billerica, where he re- 
mained for three years. During the summer of 1801 he made 
a tour of observation through various towns in the District 
of Maine, and finally selected Belfast as the most desirable 
place for a young lawyer. Here he settled on January 3, 
1802, when there were less than a dozen framed houses in the 
village, besides a few log cabins, and not more than three 
hundred inhabitants in the whole township. He was the 
pioneer lawyer of a large tract of country, now dotted with 
flourishing towns. Soon afterward he was made County At- 
torney, a position which he held until October 8, 181 1, when 
he received the appointment of Chief Justice of the Court 
of Common Pleas for the Third Eastern Circuit, at that time 
comprising the counties of Hancock and Washington, and 
afterward including the county of Penobscot. This office he 
filled until the year 1822, when the courts were re-organized, 
in consequence of the admission of the District of Maine as 
one of the States of the Union. While acting as Judge, on 
November 12, 18 12, he was chosen a Presidential Elector, 
when the vote of the Commonwealth was thrown in favor of 
De Witt Clinton, the unsuccessful competitor of Madison for 
the Presidency ; and on April 3, 18 15, he was elected a mem- 
ber of the Massachusetts Senate, where he served for one year. 
He died of paralysis at Belfast, on March 31, 1852, aged 
Si years, 9 months, and 28 days. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 121 

On October 12, 1804, Mr. Crosby was married to Sally, 
daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Mann) Davis, of Billerica. 
His wife survived him, and died on November 1, 1877, at the 
advanced age of 94 years. The late William George Crosby, 
Governor of Maine in 1853-1854, was their eldest child. 

Josiah Danforth was a son of Josiah and Sarah (Blodgett) 
Danforth, and born at Tyngsborough, on January 15, 1786. 
He pursued his preparatory studies under the instruction of 
Benjamin Stone, 1 of Tyngsborough, and the Reverend Hum- 
phrey Moore, of Milford, New Hampshire, and at Chesterfield 
Academy. He graduated at Dartmouth College in the Class 
of 1 81 1, — a class in which the town of Groton was so fully- 
represented, — and immediately afterward began the study of 
law in the office of the Honorable William M. Richardson, of 
Groton. Here he remained for a while, and then entered the 
office of Daniel Richardson, Esq., in his native town ; and after 
his admission to the Middlesex bar in December, 18 14, he 
began the practice of his profession at Litchfield, New Hamp- 
shire. In that town he lived for nine months, and then 
removed to Weare in the same State, where he practised 
law successfully for many years, enjoying the confidence of 
the neighborhood. During this period he held various town 
offices, and in the years 1823 and 1824 was chosen a member 
of the State Legislature. In 1851 he returned to his native 
town, where he ended his days on November 5, 1867. 

On September 26, 18 16, Mr. Danforth was married to 
Mary, daughter of John and Elizabeth Hunt (Smith) Farwell, 
of Tyngsborough ; and they had one child, James, who grad- 
uated at the Dartmouth Medical School in the Class of 1838. 
Mr. Danforth's widow died on December 21, 1870, at the age 
of JJ years. 

Charles Octavius Emerson was a son of Edward, Jr., 
and Nabby (Lyman) Emerson, and born at York, Maine, on 

1 Benjamin Stone, a native of Shrewsbury, and a graduate of Harvard Col- 
lege in the Class of 1776, was engaged by the town of Tyngsborough, on Sep- 
tember 12, 1803, to teach the Grammar School. He had previously taught at 
Leicester Academy, where he was the first principal, and at Westford Academy. 

16 



122 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

March 27, 1799. He fitted for college at Phillips Exeter 
Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1 8 1 8. After leaving Cambridge he began the study of law in 
the office of Jeremiah Bradbury, Esq., of York, where he 
passed one year ; and in October, 18 19, entered the office of 
the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of Groton, where he re- 
mained two years. He was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
September, 1821, and then returned to his native town, where 
he practised his profession until his death. In 1827, 1828, 
and 1829 he was a member of the Maine House of Repre- 
sentatives. His life was happy and useful, and his Christian 
influence was always felt in the community where he lived. 
He died at York, on June 22, 1863. 

On June 24, 1829, Mr. Emerson was married to Harriet 
Jane, daughter of Deacon John and Peggy (Spear) Phillips, 
of Portland, Maine ; and they had six children. 

Willard Hall was the eldest child of Willis and Mehet- 
abel (Poole) Hall, and born at Westford, on December 24, 
1780. He fitted for college at Westford Academy, and grad- 
uated at Harvard College in the Class of 1799- He studied 
law under the tuition of the Honorable Samuel Dana, of 
Groton, and after a three years' course of professional study, 
was admitted to the bar of Hillsborough County, New Hamp- 
shire, in March, 1803. Many years later, in recounting some 
of the incidents of this period of his life, he wrote : — 

The offices of Mr. Bigelow and Mr. Dana were nurseries of law- 
yers. Mr. Bigelow was a man of great ability and elevated moral 
and religious character. His speaking was rapid — rapid to a 
fault ; but it was earnest, energetic, and full of matter. He filled 
the circle in which he moved ; but on the broad extent of his State 
and nation he never attained to the eminence that was his due. 
Personal idolatry, so rife now, was then unknown. Mr. Dana was 
a good lawyer, a graceful speaker, with a melodious voice, an inter- 
esting gentleman. He abounded with anecdote ; there could be 
no more entertaining companion (page 14). 

" Memorial Address on the Life and Character of Willard Hall." By Hon. 
Daniel M. Kates. (Wilmington, 1S79. ) 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 23 

Immediately after his admission to the bar Mr. Hall passed 
a short time at his father's house in Westford, and then, on 
April 7, 1803, set out for Wilmington, Delaware, where he 
arrived in nine days, travelling the whole distance on horse- 
back. During the following month of May he established 
himself at Dover in that State, and in due time became known 
as a man of legal learning and sound judgment. From the 
year 181 1 to 18 14, and again in 1821, he was Secretary of the 
State; from 181 7 to 1821 Representative in the Fifteenth 
and Sixteenth Congresses of the United States ; and a mem- 
ber of the State Constitutional Convention in 1 83 r . On May 6, 
1823, he was appointed by President Monroe as Judge of the 
United States District Court in Delaware, a position which 
he held until December, 1871, through an exceptionally long 
period of forty-eight years. Soon after his appointment as 
Judge he removed from Dover to Wilmington, where he died 
on May 10, 1875, at the advanced age of 94 years, 4 months, 
and 16 days. 

In 1806 Judge Hall was married, first, to Junia, youngest 
daughter of William and Rebecca (Alles) Killen, who died on 
September 19, 1824; and, secondly, in 1826, to Harriet, 
daughter of Charles and Mary (Killen) Hillyard. By the 
second marriage there were no children. 

John Harris was a son of Richard and Lydia (Atherton) 
Harris, and born at Harvard, on October 13, 1769. He grad- 
uated at Harvard College in the Class of 1791, and read law 
in the office of Simeon Strong, Esq., of Amherst, and later in 
the office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton. 
After his admission to the bar he went in 1794 to Hop- 
kinton, New Hampshire, where he entered upon the practice 
of his profession, and remained until his death. Besides fill- 
ing many town offices, he was, from the year 1812 to 1823, 
Judge of Probate for Hillsborough County; from 1823 to 
1843, Judge of Probate for Merrimack County; from 1817 to 
1823, Solicitor of Hillsborough County ; and from 1823 to 1833 
Associate Justice of the Superior Court of Judicature. In 
1820 he was one of a commission to revise the code of Pro- 



124 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

bate laws in New Hampshire. He had some distinction in 
militia service, and was also prominent in the Masonic frater- 
nity. He died at Hopkinton on April 23, 1845. 

In September, 1799, Judge Harris was married to Mary, 
daughter of Eliphalet and Elizabeth (Little) Poor, of Hamp- 
stead, New Hampshire, who was born on February 10, 1779, 
and died on March 6, 1843, preceding him, by about two years. 
They had four children, all now dead. 

Walter Hastings was the eldest child of Dr. Walter and 
Lucretia (Bridge) Hastings, and born at Chelmsford, on De- 
cember 26, 1778. He pursued his preparatory studies prob- 
ably in his native town, and graduated at Harvard College in 
the Class of 1799. He bore the same name as his father and 
grandfather, who both were graduates of Harvard. After 
studying the profession of law in the office of the Honorable 
James Prescott, Jr., of Groton, he was admitted to the Middle- 
sex bar in March, 1803, and soon afterward settled atTownsend, 
where he was, in point of time, the first lawyer of the place. 
At the bar he maintained a respectable position, but his fond- 
ness for the militia was uppermost in his mind and outweighed 
all his other interests. His residence was at Townsend Har- 
bor. In the year 1809 he was chosen to the captaincy of the 
North Company of Townsend, which office he continued to 
hold until 18 12, when, war having broken out with England, 
he was commissioned, on July 8, as Lieutenant-Colonel of the 
Second Regiment, Second Brigade, Third Division of the 
Massachusetts Militia, and placed in command of his regiment 
in Boston Harbor; and on June 20, 1816, he was brevetted 
Colonel. At the end of the war he returned to Townsend 
Harbor, and resumed the practice of law. His death took 
place on June 6, 1821, and the next day he was buried with 
military honors. He is still remembered by the older citizens 
of Townsend as a man of elegant manners and dignified 
appearance. 

On March 1, 18 14, Colonel Hastings was married to Rox- 
ana, daughter of Moses and Martha (Reed) Warren, of Town- 
send ; and they had four children. The eldest child, Walter, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. I 25 

Jr., who died in Boston, on October 28, 1879, was a large 
benefactor of Harvard College, where there is now a Walter 
Hastings Hall named for him. Colonel Hastings's widow 
afterward married Elisha Glidden, Esq., a lawyer of Lowell. 

The following obituary notice is found in the " Columbian 
Centinel " (Boston), June 13, 1821: — 

In Townsend, on the 6th inst. Walter Hastings Esq. Counsellor 
at Law, aged 42, late Lieut.-Colonel of the Militia, and interred on 
the 7th. The funeral procession was preceded by a numerous mili- 
tary escort, who voluntarily assembled to unite their solemn honors 
with the civic rites on the occasion. 

Thomas Hopkinson was a son of Theophilus and Susanna 
(Allen) Hopkinson, and born at New Sharon, Maine, on 
August 25, 1804. He pursued his preparatory studies at 
Farmington Academy, and graduated at Harvard College with 
the highest honors in the Class of 1830. After leaving Cam- 
bridge, he entered the office of the Honorable Samuel Dana, 
of Groton, as a law student, where he remained a short time, 
and then continued his studies in the office of the Hon- 
orable Luther Lawrence, of Groton. He was admitted to the 
Middlesex bar in June, 1833, and began the practice of law in 
the new manufacturing town of Lowell, where he became the 
partner of his former instructor, Mr. Lawrence, who had pre- 
viously removed there. In his profession he soon rose to an 
eminent rank, and was widely known as an able lawyer and a 
wise counsellor. On November 13, 1837, he was chosen a 
member of the General Court, and on November 11, 1844, 
for a second term ; and on January 9, 1846, in joint conven- 
tion of the branches of the Legislature, he was elected a 
member of the State Senate. He was a delegate from, Bos- 
ton to the Convention in 1853 for revising the State Consti- 
tution. On October 13, 1848, he was appointed a Judge of 
the Court of Common Pleas, but on August 1 of the follow- 
ing year resigned his seat on the bench, as he had been 
chosen president of the Boston and Worcester Railroad Cor- 
poration. When he entered upon the duties of this office as 
president, he removed to Boston, where he lived until the 



126 THE LAWYERS OE GROTON. 

autumn of 1855, and thence to Cambridge, where he resided 
until his death on November 17, 1856. 

On November 30, 1836, Mr. Hopkinson was married to 
Corinna Aldrich, daughter of the Honorable John and Diantha 
(Aldrich) Prentiss, of Keene, New Hampshire. 

John Park Little was the youngest son of John and 
Margaret (Park) Little, and born at Lunenburg, on No- 
vember 17, 1772. He was a graduate of Brown University 
in the Class of 1794, where he also took a Master's degree, 
and studied law in the office of the Honorable Timothy 
Bigelow, of Groton. In the year 1801 he established himself 
at Gorham, Maine, where his many virtues gave the promising 
hope of a long and successful life, but which was disappointed. 
He died in that town, on March 26, 1809. His father was 
a large owner of land in that part of Groton which is now 
Shirley, and his mother was a native of Groton. 

On September 1, 1805, Mr. Little was married to Mary 
Jackson, youngest child of the Honorable Oliver and Lydia 
(Baldwin) Prescott, of Groton. His widow afterward married 
the Honorable Lothrop Lewis, of Gorham. She was born on 
November 8, 1774, and died on May 30, 1862 ; and for more 
than fifty years was an active member of the Congregational 
Church at Gorham. 

Edward St. Loe Livermore was the eldest child of 
Edward St. Loe and Sarah Crease (Stackpole) Livermore, 
and born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on February 12, 
1800. He studied law in the office of the Honorable Luther 
Lawrence, of Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar 
in March, 1832. During several years he practised his pro- 
fession in Lowell, where he died on March 22, 1842. 

On June 21, 1828, Mr. Livermore was married at Methuen, 
to Hannah Gove Brown, a native of Pittsfield, New Hampshire. 

John Locke was the second son of Jonathan ami Mary 
(Haven | Nichols) Locke, and born at Hopkinton, on Febru- 
ary 14, 1764. In 1769 his father's family removed to Framing- 
ham, and thence, in 1770, to Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, at 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. \2J 

that time called Monadnock No. 2, where they lived in a log- 
house. In 1772 the family went to Ashby, where John worked 
on a farm till he was twenty-two years of age. He fitted for 
college at Phillips Academy, Andover, and entered Dartmouth 
College in the second quarter of the Sophomore year. Here 
he remained only a short time, when he entered Harvard Col- 
lege at the beginning of the Junior year, and graduated in the 
Class of 1792. He then began the study of law in the office 
of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton, and was ad- 
mitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1796. He estab- 
lished himself in the practice of his profession at Ashby, 
which town he represented in the General Court during the 
years 1804, 1805, 1813, and 1823. In 1820 he was a member 
of the Convention for revising the State Constitution ; and 
from 1823 to 1829 a representative in Congress from the Wor- 
cester North District. In 1830 he was a State Senator from 
Middlesex County, and in 183 1 a member of the Executive 
Council. In 1837 he removed to Lowell in order to live with 
a son, and in 1849 to Boston, where he died on March 29, 
1855. 

On May 25, 1799, Mr. Locke was married to Hannah, 
daughter of General Nathaniel and Molly (Jackson) Goodwin, 
of Plymouth ; and they had five children. He was a brother 
of Joseph, whose sketch appears next ; and they married 
sisters. 

Joseph Locke was the youngest son of Jonathan and Mary 
(Haven | Nichols) Locke, and born at Fitzwilliam, New 
Hampshire, on April 8, 1772. He graduated at Dartmouth 
College in the Class of 1797, and studied law in the office of 
the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton. He was admitted 
to the Middlesex bar in September, 1800, and, according to 
" The Massachusetts Register and United States Calendar," 
for 1802 and for 1803, was an attorney at Littleton during 
those years. The Reverend George Thomas Chapman, D.D , 
in his " Sketches of the Alumni of Dartmouth College," says 
that Mr. Locke at that time was living at Acton. John 
Goodwin Locke, in his " Book of the Lockes " (page 1 14), 



128 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

says that Joseph opened an office at Billerica in 1801, which 
is probably correct, as it was the family account. Mr. Locke 
took high rank in his profession, and had a large practice at 
Billerica. From the years 1806 to 1810 inclusive, he repre- 
sented that town in the General Court, and in 1820 was a 
member of the Convention for revising the Constitution of 
Massachusetts. On July 2, 18 14, he was appointed Special 
Justice of the Court of Common Pleas of Middlesex County, 
but he was not sworn in as such until September 10, 1816. 
In 1 816 he was one of the Presidential Electors, when the 
vote of the Electoral College was cast, on December 4, in 
favor of Rufus King; and in 1 82 1 and 1822 a member of the 
Executive Council. On June 15, 18 19, he was appointed 
Chief Justice of the Court of Sessions in Middlesex County, 
which office he held for eight years, and until the Court was 
abolished by an Act of the Legislature, on February 26, 1828. 
In 1833 he removed from Billerica to Lowell, where on March 
23 of that year he had been appointed Judge of the Police 
Court, which position he held until April, 1846. He was also 
a member of the General Court from that city during the 
session of 1849. His death took place in Lowell, on Novem- 
ber 10, 1853. 

On November 16, 1803, Judge Locke was married to Lydia, 
daughter of General Nathaniel and Molly (Jackson) Goodwin, 
of Plymouth ; and they had a family of eight children. 

Stephen Minot was a son of Captain Jonas and Mary 
(Hall) Minot, and born at Concord, on September 28, 1776. 
He fitted for college at Westford Academy, and graduated 
at Harvard College in the Class of 1801. He pursued his 
legal studies under the tuition of the Honorable Samuel Dana, 
of Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in June, 
1804. He began to practise his profession at New Gloucester, 
Maine, but at the end of a year removed to Haverhill in this 
State. On October 14, 18 1 1 , he was appointed Judge of the 
Circuit Court of Common Pleas, and held the office until 1820, 
when the law which created that court was repealed. In 
1824 he was appointed District Attorney for Essex County, 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 29 

which office he held until 1830. In 1825 he was chosen a 
representative to the General Court, and would have been re- 
chosen, had he not declined a second nomination. During the 
later years of his life he withdrew from the active practice 
of law, and devoted himself to the study of mathematics and 
the Latin authors, for which he always had a fondness. He 
died at Haverhill, on April 6, 1861. 

On November 9, 1809, Mr. Minot was married, first, to 
Rebecca, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca (Peabody) Trask, 
of Bradford, who died on November 27, 1832 ; and, on January 
6, 1 841, secondly, to Ellen Partridge, daughter of the Hono- 
rable Stephen Partridge and Achsah (Moore) Gardner, of 
Bolton. His wife's name was originally Azubah Partridge 
Gardner, but by an Act of the Legislature, on March 11, 
1828, it was changed. 

George Morey was a son of the Reverend George and 
Anna (Palmer) Morey, and born at Walpole, on June 12, 1789. 
He was fitted for college by his uncle, the Reverend Stephen 
Palmer, of Needham, and graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 181 1. He took high rank in his class, which was pre- 
eminent for ability and scholarship. For two years after 
graduation he was the preceptor of Framingham Academy, 
and while a resident of Framingham began the study of law. 
Afterward he entered the office of the Honorable Luther 
Lawrence, of Groton, where he finished his professional 
studies. After his admission to the Suffolk bar on March 16, 
1818, he began the practice of law at Roxbury, where he re- 
mained a few years, and then removed to Boston, which 
afterward became his permanent home. He was a wise and 
sagacious counsellor, and an active member of the Whig 
party during its existence. For many years he was Chair- 
man of the Whig State Central Committee. In 1830 and 
1 83 1 he was a representative to the General Court, and 
in 1839 an d ^40 a member of the State Senate. In 1842 
and 1844 ne was a member of the Executive Council, and 
in 1853 a member of the Convention for revising the Con- 
stitution of Massachusetts ; and from 1854 to 1859 an Overseer 

17 



130 I HE LAWYERS I >l- GROTON. 

of Harvard College. He was also a Presidential Elector at 
large in i860, when the vote of the Commonwealth was thrown 
for Abraham Lincoln. He died in Boston on May II, 1866. 

On May 29, 1823, Mr. Morey was married to Fanny, 
daughter of Major Lavvson and Mary (Jones) Buckminster, of 
Framingham ; but they had no children. 

Augustus Peabody was a son of Deacon John and Mary 
(Perley) Peabody, and born at Andover, on May 17, 1779. 
He graduated at Dartmouth College in the Class of 1803, and 
studied law under the direction of the Honorable Timothy 
Bigelow, of Groton. He was admitted to the Middlesex bar 
in September, 1806, and began the practice of his profession 
at Boston. His given name originally was Asa, but by an Act 
of the Legislature, passed on June 15, 1815.it was changed to 
Augustus. In the year 181 9 he was a member of the General 
Court from the town of Boston. About 1846 he removed to 
Roxbury, where he died on October 2, 185 1. 

On October 28, 181 5, Mr. Peabody was married to Miranda, 
youngest child of Thatcher and Lucy (Wiswall) Goddard, of 
Boston. 

David Perham was the younger son of Peter and Rebecca 
(Buttrick) Perham, and born at Ashby, on February 10, 
1780. He attended school at Groton Academy, then under 
the preceptorship of William M. Richardson, and immediately 
afterward began the study of law in the office of Judge Dana 
and of JVIr. Richardson, his former preceptor at the Academy, 
who was now in partnership with Mr. Dana. He was ad- 
mitted to the Middlesex bar in March, 1809, and opened an 
office at Acton, where he remained until the summer of 181 1, 
when he removed to Orrington, Maine. He lived in that 
part of the town which, on its division in February, 1812, 
became Brewer ; and here he lived until the year 1833, at 
which time he took up his residence in Bangor. He was 
actively engaged in the practice of his profession until 1822. 
when he was appointed Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. 
He died in Bangor, on May 31, 1845. 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. I 3 I 

On August 25, 1 8 14, Judge Perham was married, first, to 
Betsey, daughter of David and Hannah (Davis) Barnard, of 
Acton ; and, on October 13, 1830, secondly, to Charlotte, 
daughter of Caleb and Mary (Jackson) Gardner, of Brookline. 
His second wife was born in Newton, on January 22, 1760, 
and died in Roxbury, on April 21, 1869. 

Jonathan Porter was a son of Jonathan and Phebe 
(Abbot) Porter, and born at Medford, on November 13, 1791 . 
He was prepared for college at a private school kept by Dr. 
John Hosmer, of Medford, and graduated with the highest 
honors at Harvard College in the Class of 18 14. He studied 
law partly in the office of the Honorable Luther Lawrence, of 
Groton, and partly in the office of the Honorable Asahel 
Stearns, of Chelmsford, and was admitted to the Middlesex 
bar in November, 18 19. He was fond of books and study, 
more so than of professional practice, and for that reason 
he never took the high rank as a lawyer which his attain- 
ments in other respects seemed to warrant. In the year 1828 
he delivered the oration before the Phi Beta Kappa at Cam- 
bridge. Throughout his life he was a diligent student, and 
particularly fond of Greek literature. During a long and fatal 
illness his patience and resignation were the triumph of an 
abiding Christian faith. He died at Medford, on June 1 1 , 

1859- 

On July 22, 1823, Mr. Porter was married to Catharine, 
daughter of Samuel and Anna (Orne) Gray, of Medford ; and 
they had three children. An only son, long since deceased, 
was a classmate of the writer of these lines. 

Joshua Prescott was a son of Deacon John and Martha 
(Abbot) Prescott, and born at Westford, on November 15, 
1780. He was the last surviving member of his father's 
family, which consisted of six sons and one daughter, who 
lived to mature age. Three of the sons received a liberal 
education, Samuel, Aaron, and the subject of this notice. 
Joshua pursued his preparatory studies at Westford Academy, 
and graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1807. 



132 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

After leaving Cambridge he taught school for a short while 
at Saco, Maine, and then began the study of law in the office 
of his kinsman the Honorable James Prescott, Jr., of Groton. 
He was admitted to the Middlesex bar in June, 1811, when he 
opened an office at Reading. He afterward removed to Lynn, 
where he remained only for a few months, and then returned 
to Reading, which continued to be the place of his permanent 
abode. In the year 1830 he published " A Digest of the 
Probate Laws of Massachusetts, relative to the power and 
duty of executors, administrators, guardians, heirs, legatees, 
and creditors," a work which has had a wide circulation. In 
1826 and 1827 he was a member of the General Court from 
the town of Reading. He was much interested in agricultural 
pursuits, and cultivated successfully the farm on which for 
many years he lived. He never sought public office, and as a 
citizen was highly respected in all the relations of life. His 
faith as a Christian in the unbounded love of God was firm 
and unwavering, and he awaited his end with calmness and 
resignation. He died on January 1, 1859, at ms homestead 
in Reading. 

On January 5, 181 3, Mr. Prescott was married to Abigail, 
only daughter and surviving child of Lieutenant Thomas and 
Abigail (Bryant) Eaton, of Reading ; and they had five 
children. His widow died on February 4, 1867, aged 82 years 
and 1 month. 

Thomas Rice was a son of Noah and Hannah (Warren) 
Rice, and born at Sutton, on November 27, 1734. He gradu- 
ated at Harvard College in the Class of 1756, and immediately 
afterward studied medicine under the instruction of Dr. Oliver 
Prescott, of Groton. About the year 1760 he settled as a 
practitioner at Wiscasset Point, and with the exception of 
Dr. William Crawford at Fort Pownal, was the earliest edu- 
cated physician in that part of the State of Maine. He 
became eminent in his profession, and had a large and 
successful practice. In 1774 he was a member of the General 
Court, and the first representative to the Legislature chosen 
from any town east of the Kennebec River. From an early 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 133 

period he was active in political affairs, and, though a physician, 
he was called upon to take a judicial station. In those days 
it was customary to select any man best qualified for the 
office, whether from the medical or clerical professions. On 
September 7, 1763, he was appointed one of the Justices of 
the Court of Common Pleas for Lincoln County, and later 
the Chief Justice of the same Court, positions which he held 
for nearly half a century ; and for many years during this 
period he was also Register of Deeds. On October 25, 1780, 
he was chosen a Senator to the Massachusetts Legislature, 
and re-chosen for the two following years. From 1794 to 1799 
he served as Trustee of Bowdoin College, although this was 
before the institution was fairly organized. He died at his 
home in Wiscasset, on April 21, 181 2. 

On January 15, 1767, Judge Rice was married to Rebekah, 
daughter of John and Patience (Tappan) Kingsbury, of Wis- 
casset, a native of Newbury, who died on August 19, 18 16. 

Thomas Rice, Jr., was the eldest child of Dr. Thomas and 
Rebekah (Kingsbury) Rice, and born at Pownalborough, now 
Wiscasset, Maine, on March 30, 1768. He graduated at Har- 
vard College in the Class of 1791, and came to Groton in order 
to teach school, and at the same time to study medicine under 
the tuition of Dr. Oliver Prescott, who had been also his father's 
instructor. After a short experience he gave up medicine 
and entered the office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of 
Groton, where he remained as a law student for three years. 
After completing this course, he went to Wiscasset, where 
the court was then sitting, and applied for admission to the 
bar, but was estopped by the rule which required that a part 
of the professional study should be pursued in the county. 
His own account of this new perplexity is given in Willis's 
" History of the Law, the Courts, and the Lawyers of Maine," 
as follows : — 

I knew not then what to do but to return to Groton to consult 
my friend Mr. Bigelow. I stopped in Boston, — the Court of Com- 
mon Pleas was sitting there. I saw Judge Sullivan, the president 
of the bar in that county, and told him my story. He said that he 



134 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

would call a bar meeting and submit my case, which he did, and 
they voted immediately for my admission to practise in that county. 
I have the certificate of the clerk of the court, Ezekiel Price, now 
before me (1851), which shows that fifty-seven years since (1794), 
1 was admitted to the practice of law (page 182). 

Mr. Rice then established himself at Winslow, Maine, which 
at that time included the present city of Waterville, where he 
soon became prominent as a lawyer. In 18 14 he represented 
the town in the General Court of Massachusetts, and was a 
member of Congress from the Kennebec District, for two 
terms, from 18 15 to 18 19 (Fourteenth and Fifteenth Con- 
gresses). At the end of a long and useful career he laid 
down peacefully the burden of a busy life, on August 25, 1854, 
at his own home in Winslow, carrying with him the love 
of kindred and the respect of neighbors. He gave up the 
practice of law about twenty years before he died. 

On April 18, 1776, Mr. Rice was married, first, to Sarah, 
daughter of the Honorable William and Mercy (Porter) Swan, 
of Gardiner, Maine, and a native of Groton, who died at 
Winslow, on September 26, 1840 ; and on February 16, 1842, 
secondly, to Susannah, daughter of Colonel Reuben Hayes 
and Dorcas (Storer) Green, of Winslow, who died at the same 
place, on December 1, 1879. 

Danikl Richardson was the third son of Captain Daniel 
and Sarah (Merchant) Richardson, and born at Pelham, New 
Hampshire, on January 19, 1783. He studied law at Groton, 
in the office of Judge Samuel Dana, and was admitted to the 
Middlesex bar in June, 1807. He afterward settled at Tyngs- 
borough, where he was postmaster for thirty-five years ; 
representative to the General Court in 1827 and 1828 ; and a 
member of the State Senate in 1831, 1832, and 1833, besides 
holding various town offices. He died at Tyngsborough, on 
February 12, 1842. 

On April 2, 18 16, Mr. Richardson was married, first, to 
Mary, second daughter of William and Mary (Robv) Adams, of 
Chelmsford, who died on August t, 1S25 ; and, on November 
23, 1826, secondly, to Hannah, fourth daughter of the same 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 35 

parents. He was the father of the Honorable William Adams 
Richardson, of Washington, D. C, Chief Justice of the Court 
of Claims, who for many years and in many ways has been 
associated with the town of Groton. 

Nathaniel Shattuck was the eldest child of Nathaniel 
and Catharine (Andrews) Shattuck, and born at Temple, New 
Hampshire, on February 27, 1774. He was a descendant of 
an early settler of Groton, and a graduate of Dartmouth Col- 
lege in the Class of 1801. He read law for two years under 
the direction of the Honorable Benjamin Joseph Gilbert, of 
Hanover, New Hampshire, and later in the office of the Hon- 
orable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton, and was admitted to the 
Middlesex bar in June, 1804. He began the practice of his 
profession at Milford, but afterward lived at Amherst and 
Mason Village, now known as Greenville, all in Hillsborough 
County, New Hampshire. Owing to the failure of his eyesight, 
he subsequently gave up the practice of law, and became 
a resident of Lancaster, Massachusetts. He afterward dwelt 
in one or two other towns in this State, and died at Concord, 
on September 1, 1864. 

On June 15, 1806, Mr. Shattuck was married, first, to Mary, 
daughter of the Honorable James and Betsey (Kimball) 
Wallace, of Milford, New Hampshire, who was born on April 
5, 1790, and died on June 3, 1812; and, on April 4, 1816, 
secondly, to Sally, daughter of Samuel and Jane (Seaton) 
Stanley, of Amherst, New Hampshire. By the first marriage 
there was one daughter, and by the second there were six 
children. The second wife was born at Amherst on July 25, 
1789, and died in Manchester, New Hampshire, on February 
7. 1865. 

Samuel Emerson Smith was a son of Manasseh and Han- 
nah (Emerson) Smith, and born at Hollis, New Hampshire, 
on March 12, 1788. He pursued his preparatory studies at 
Groton Academy, and graduated at Harvard College in the 
Class of 1808. He studied the profession of law, partly with 
the Honorable Samuel Dana, of Groton, and partly with his 



136 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

brothers, Manasseh Smith, of Warren, Maine, and Joseph 
Emerson Smith, of Boston, and was admitted to the Suffolk 
bar on February 25, 181 2. Immediately afterward he estab- 
lished himself at Wiscasset, Maine, where he soon took a 
high position as a sound and discriminating lawyer. In 1819 
he was chosen by that town a member of the General Court 
of Massachusetts, and during the next year a member of the 
Legislature of Maine, which was the first session held in the 
new State. In 1821 he was appointed Chief Justice of the Cir- 
cuit Court of Common Pleas for the Second Circuit, and during 
the next year, on its reorganization, when the circuit system 
was abolished, he was made an Associate Judge of the new 
Court, which position he held until 1830. During that year 
he was chosen Governor of the State, and re-chosen at the 
next two annual elections, and served as such through the 
years 1831, 1832, and 1833. It was during his administration 
that the subject of the northeastern boundary began to excite 
the public mind, and also that the removal of the seat of gov- 
ernment from Portland to Augusta took place. In 1835 he 
was appointed to the bench of the Court of Common Pleas, 
from which he retired in 1837.. He died at Wiscasset, on 
March 3, i860. 

On September 12, 1832, Governor Smith was married to 
Louisa Sophia, daughter of Henry Weld and Esther (Gould) 
Fuller, of Augusta. 

Asahel Stearns was a son of the Honorable Josiah and 
Mary (Corey) Stearns, and born at Lunenburg, on June 17, 
1774. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 
1797, and on July 1 1, 1797, was appointed Preceptor of Groton 
Academy, which position he held only for six months. Giv- 
ing up the preceptorship, he began the study of law in the 
office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton, and was 
admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1800. Imme- 
diately afterward he established himself as a lawyer in 
Chelmsford, where he remained until 181 5, when he removed 
to Charlestown. While a resident of Chelmsford he was 
chosen, on November 7, 18 14, a Representative to the Four- 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 37 

teenth Congress of the United States. In 181 7 he was ap- 
pointed University Professor at the Harvard Law School, 
which chair he held for twelve years. The title has since 
been changed to the Bussey Professorship. By a Resolve of 
the Legislature, passed on February 4, 1832, the Governor 
was authorized to appoint three commissioners to revise the 
General Statutes, and under this authority Professor Stearns 
was named as one of them. He died in Cambridge, on 
February 5, 1839. 

On April 23, 1801, Professor Stearns was married at 
Chelmsford to Mrs. Frances Wentworth (Whiting) Shepard, 
daughter of Benjamin and Grace (Hall) Whiting, and widow 
of Daniel Shepard, of Amherst, New Hampshire. 

John Stuart was a son of Charles and Esther (Ferguson) 
Stuart, and born at Peterborough, New Hampshire, on Sep- 
tember 5, 1782. His mother was a daughter of John Fergu- 
son, and born at Groton, on March 31, 1747. Mr. Stuart 
studied law in the office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, 
of Groton, and was admitted to the Middlesex bar in Decem- 
ber, 1807. He began the practice of his profession at New- 
buryport, but soon afterward went to Boston, where he was 
living from 181 3 to 1829, according to the Directories of that 
period. He is said, in Smith's History of Peterborough 
(page 300 of the second part), to have died' in the year 
1848, but the place of death is not there given. 

On June 29, 1809, Mr. Stuart was married to Sarah Taylor, 
only daughter of James and Sarah (Farwell) Brazer, of 
Groton. They were the parents of Mrs. Sarah Brazer (Stuart) 
Berry, who is mentioned in the second volume of this His- 
torical Series (page 388). 

John Leighton Tuttle, the eldest of thirteen children, 
was a son of John and Elizabeth (Leighton) Tuttle, and born 
at Littleton, on February 10, 1774. He was fitted for college 
partly at New Ipswich Academy, and partly by the Reverend 
Joseph Willard, of Boxborough, and graduated at Harvard 
College in the Class of 1796. He studied law, first, in the 

18 



138 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton, for 
two years, but finished his studies in the office of the Hon- 
orable Simeon Strong, of Amherst. He began to practise his 
profession at Westmoreland, New Hampshire, and soon after- 
ward removed tc Concord in this State. He was admitted to 
the Middlesex bar in April, 1803, and later became prominent 
in the councils of the Democratic party. He was chosen a 
member of the State Senate in 1808 and the five following 
years, and was also the County Treasurer during the same 
period. He was postmaster of Concord from January 1, 181 1, 
to February 14, 1813. On March 12, 1812, he was commis- 
sioned Lieutenant Colonel commanding the Ninth Regiment 
of Infantry, United States Army, which took part in the mili- 
tary operations around Sackett's Harbor, on Lake Ontario, 
and a short time afterward was appointed Brigade Paymaster. 
He died, unmarried, at Watertown, New York, on July 23, 
1 8 1 3, when there was a strong suspicion that he had been 
poisoned by a woman for the purpose of robbery. 

John Varnum was a son of Parker and Dorcas (Brown) 
Varnum, and born at Dracut, on June 25, 1778. He gradu- 
ated at Harvard College in the Class of 1798, and studied law 
in the office of the Honorable Timothy Bigelow, of Groton. 
He was admitted to the Middlesex bar in September, 1801, 
and the next year began the practice of his profession at 
Haverhill, where he was highly successful as a lawyer. On 
April 5, 1813, as a Federalist, he was chosen a member of the 
State Senate; and on November 1, 1824, a member of the 
Nineteenth Congress from the Essex North District, and 
later of the next two Congresses, serving in that body from 
the year 1825 to 183 1. Soon after his return from Washing- 
ton, he removed to the new town of Lowell, and thence to 
Niles, Michigan, where he died, after a short illness, on July 
23, 1836. 

On October 9, 1806, Mr. Varnum was married, first, to 
Mary Cooke, daughter of Dr. Nathaniel and Anna (White) 
Saltonstall, of Haverhill ; and, on May 23, 1826, in Washing- 
ton, D. C, secondly, to Mrs. Mary (Pease) Varnum. The sec- 
ond wife was an adopted daughter of the Honorable Gideon 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 1 39 

Granger, of New York, and the widow of James Mitchell Var- 
num, son of the Honorable Joseph Bradley Varnum, United 
States Senator from Massachusetts. She was a daughter of 
Dr. Augustine and Mary (Austin) Pease, born at Suffield, 
Connecticut, on March 5, 1783, and died on September 11, 
1847. 

Levi Wallace is a son of Benjamin and Susan (Spaulding) 
Wallace, and was born at Townsend, on February 27, 1831. 
He attended school at Appleton Academy, New Ipswich, 
during 1857 and 1858 ; and for a short time after this period 
he was a teacher at the Merrimack Normal Institute at Reed's 
Ferry, a village in Merrimack, New Hampshire. In the year 
1859 he began the study of law in the office of John Spaul- 
ding, Esq., of Groton, and on April 15, 1862, was admitted 
to the Middlesex bar. He settled first at Pepperell, but on 
October 27, 1874, removed to Ayer, where he now resides. 
On November 5, 1867, he was chosen a member of the Gen- 
eral Court for the session of 1868 from the towns of Groton 
and Pepperell ; and on November 7, 1871, a member of the 
Senate for the session of 1872 from the Fifth Middlesex Dis- 
trict, and re-chosen to the same office for the following year. 
On August 15, 1873, he was appointed Special Justice of the 
First District Court of Northern Middlesex, and on February 
3, 1874, Standing Justice of the same court. At Commence- 
ment, June 30, 1886, Amherst College conferred upon him 
the honorary degree of A.M. 

On September 20, 1863, Judge Wallace was married to 
Mrs. Hannah Farrar (Rogers) Blaney, daughter of John 
William and Martha Farrar (Wallace) Rogers, and widow of 
Aaron Blaney, of Pepperell. 

Giles Henry Whitney was a son of Abel and Abigail 
(Townsend) Whitney, and born in Boston, on January 18, 
18 18. He fitted for college at the Boston Latin School, and 
graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1837. He 
studied law in the office of George F. Farley, Esq., of Groton, 
and in 1842 attended a course of lectures at the Harvard Law 
School. He was admitted to the bar during that year, and 
began the practice of his profession at Westminster, but after- 



140 THE LAWYERS OF GROTON. 

ward lived at Templeton, and subsequently at Winchendon, 
to which town he removed in 1855. He was a member of 
the State Senate in 1851, — at that time a resident of Tem- 
pleton, — and a member of the House of Representatives in 
1864, 1866, and 1 88 1. For twenty-five years he acted as 
Moderator at the town-meetings, and in every way was a 
most useful citizen. Though modest and retiring in his hab- 
its, he was firm and positive in his convictions, and con- 
scientious in the performance of every duty. He died at 
Winchendon, on January 12, 1888. 

On November 28, 1850, Mr. Whitney was married to Lydia 
Ann, daughter of Joseph, Jr., and Mary (Wood) Davis, of 
Northborough. 

Frederick Augustus Worcester was a son of Jesse and 
Sarah (Parker) Worcester, and born at Hollis, New Hamp- 
shire, on January 28, 1807. His parents had fifteen children, 
nine sons and six daughters ; and of the sons five graduated 
either at Harvard or Yale, and two others entered Harvard, 
of whom one died in college, and the other left during his 
Junior year. Joseph Emerson Worcester, the distinguished 
lexicographer, was one of these brothers. Frederick fitted for 
college partly at Pinkerton Academy, Derry, New Hampshire, 
and partly at Phillips Academy, Andover, and graduated at 
Harvard College in the Class of 1831. Immediately after- 
ward he began the study of law under the instruction of Ben- 
jamin M. Farley, Esq., of Hollis, where he remained about a 
year. He then attended the Harvard Law School for one 
term, finishing his professional studies in the office of George 
F. Farley, Esq., of Groton. After his admission to the bar 
he began the practice of his profession at Bangor, Maine, 
where he lived less than a year. In the summer of 1836 he 
removed to Townsend, which continued to be the place of his 
permanent abode, though during the last fifteen years of his 
life he also had an office at Ayer. He was a Representative 
to the General Court during the session of 1856/^ 

On January 21, 1854, Mr. Worcester was married at 
Townsend to Jane McAfee, daughter of Charles and Try- 
phena (Hubbard) Kellogg, of Amherst, Massachusetts. 

.# ■*', Audi i«& f£*t** <t $avH+«U ,**A~* &*,&**. 



APPENDIX 



GROTON AS A SHIRE TOWN. 

On May 10, 1643, the Colony of Massachusetts Bay was 
divided into four counties : namely, Middlesex, Suffolk, Essex, 
and Norfolk; though the Norfolk County of that period did 
not comprise in any respect the same territory now known 
by that name. 

Middlesex is therefore one of the oldest counties in the 
Commonwealth, as it is one of the largest in population. In 
the year 1729 an attempt was made to divide it and form a 
new county from the northwestern section. The subject is 
referred to in the Reverend Wilkes Allen's History of Chelms- 
ford (p. 44), where the author says that a committee was ap- 
pointed by the town of Chelmsford in 1729, and the next four 
years, to meet with committees from other places in order 
to carry out the plan. He then gives a list of the towns 
which were to be embraced in the new county, as follows : 
Groton, Townsend, Pepperell, Dunstable, Merrimack, Dracut, 
Litchfield, Chelmsford, Westford, Littleton, Concord, Bedford, 
Billerica, and Tewksbury. At that time Merrimack and 
Litchfield were considered as belonging to Massachusetts ; 
but after the new Provincial line was settled in the spring of 
1 741, both these towns fell on the New Hampshire side of the 
boundary. It is a mistake, however, to include Pepperell in 
the list, as that place was not incorporated for many years 
after this period, either as a precinct or a district. Both 
Bedford and Westford were set off as towns on September 23, 



142 APPENDIX. 

1732, and Tovvnsend was granted on June 29, 1732 ; but, being 
new settlements, and expecting soon to be made towns, they 
were interested in the scheme. Tewksbury was incorporated 
on December 23, 1734, and probably took no part in the 
movement. 

Rums Campbell Torrey, Esq., in his " History of the Town 
of Fitchburg, Massachusetts" (1836 edition), refers to the 
same subject, and says that the inhabitants of Lunenburg in 
the year 1729 chose Captain Josiah Willard as their agent 
" to join with others to consider what may be best in order 
to divide the county of Middlesex." The scheme resulted, 
on April 2, 1731, in the formation of Worcester County, which 
took eight towns out of Middlesex, besides others from Suf- 
folk and Hampshire ; though it was not the same affair as 
the one mentioned in the History of Chelmsford. Mr. Torrey 
furthermore says : — 

In a little more than two years after this, attempts were made to 
form a new county out of the counties of Worcester and Middlesex, 
of which Groton was to be the shire town. These attempts in a 
short time were abandoned (page 35). 

Further particulars of this movement are given in extracts 
from the printed Journal of the Massachusetts House of Rep- 
resentatives, under the respective dates of June 15 and 17, 
1736, as follows : — 

On a motion made and seconded by divers Members, Ordered, 
That the House will enter into the consideration of the Petition of 
Benjamin Prescot, Esq ; and Capt. Joseph Blanchard, for them- 
selves and others, praying for a division of the Countys of Middlesex 
and Worcester on Thursday next the 1 7///. currant in the forenoon 
(page 49). 

According to the order of Tuesday last the House enter'd into 
the consideration of the Petition of Benjamin Prescot, Esq ; and 
Capt. Joseph Blanchard, Agents for Groton, Dunstable, iS:c. praying 
for a new County to be erected partly out of Middlesex and partly 
out of Worcester Countys, as entred the 18th. of June last, and 26th. 
of March and referred ; the same being read, with the respective 



APPENDIX. 143 

answers thereto, and some debate being had, the following Vote 
passed, viz. In answer to the within Petition, Ordered, That the 
prayer thereof be so far granted as that the Towns of Grototi, Dim- 
stable, Littleton, JVesford, Dracut, Nottingham, 2'ownshend, Lunen- 
burg//., and Harvard, with the Towns lately granted, and lying 
Northerly and Westerly of the Towns afore enumerated, and not 
already included in any County, be and hereby are erected into a 
seperate and distinct County by themselves, to all intents and pur- 
poses in the Law, and that the Petitioners have leave to bring in a 
Bill accordingly. Sent up for Concurrence (page 51). 

The question of dividing the county does not appear to 
have been brought forward again for nearly thirty years. In 
the Journal of the House of Representatives, June 6, 1764, the 
following entry is found : — 

A Petition of Capt. Abel Lawrence and others, Agents for several 
Towns in the County of Middlesex, praying that sundry Towns in 
the County of Middlesex and Worcester as mentioned, may be 
erected into a seperate County. 

Read and Ordered, That the Petitioners insert Copies of this 
Petition in all the Boston News-Papers three Weeks successively, 
that so the several Towns in the Counties of Middlesex and Worces- 
ter, may shew Cause, if any they have, on the second Wednesday of 
the next Session of this Court, why the Prayer thereof should not 
be granted. Sent up for Concurrence (page 39). 

The petition is given in " The Massachusetts Gazette. And 
Boston News- Letter," August 23, 1764, and sets forth the 
reasons for the division. It is as follows : — 

Province of the (_ 
Massachusetts-Bay. ) 

To His Excellency FRANcis Bernard, Esq; Captain- 
General and Governor in Chief in and over His MAJESTYS 
said Province ; and to the Honorable His Majesty's Council, 
and House of Representatives, in General Court assembled 
at Boston, December, A. D. 1763. 



144 APPENDIX. 

THE Petition of the Subscribers, Agents for the several Towns 
and Districts, viz. of Groton, and District of Shirley, and 
Pepperrell, as also the Towns of Westford, Lyttleton and Towns hend, 
in the County of Middlesex, and the Town of Lunenburg, and the 
Township of Ipswich-Canada [Winchendon], and Dorchester-Canada 
(so called) [Ashburnham] in the County of Worcester, 

Humbly sheweth, 

THAT Your Petitioners and their Predecessors, inhabiting the 
several Towns and Districts aforesaid, from the first Settlements of 
said Towns and Districts have, and still do labour under great 
Difficulty and Burthen, by Reason of the great Distance they live 
from the usual Place of holding the several Courts of Justice within 
the Counties aforesaid, as well as the Courts of Probate in the same 
Counties ; many of the Inhabitants living fifty, some forty, and few 
less than thirty Miles from the Courts of Probate aforesaid, which 
renders it at all Times very difficult, and sometimes impossible, for 
poor Widows and others to attend the Probate Courts, and other 
Courts of Justice, without great Expence ; by Means whereof, many 
times Actions are and necessarily must be continued, to the great 
Cost and Charge, oftentimes, to poor Orphan Children, and others 
who are necessarily obliged to attend said Courts ; and this almost 
inconceivable Difficulty and Burden daily increases, in Proportion 
to the Increase of the Inhabitants of said Counties, which are now 
so large, that the Inferior as well as Superior Courts are frequently 
obliged to adjourn over Sundays, in order to finish the necessary 
Business of said Courts, to the great Cost and Damages of many 
poor Witnesses and Jurymen, and others who are obliged to attend, 
&c. Wherefore Your Petitioners, in behalf of themselves and the 
several Towns and Districts aforesaid, most earnestly pray Your 
Excellency and Honors to take their difficult Case under your wise 
Consideration, and pass such Acts and Laws, as that the Towns 
and Districts aforesaid, together with the Towns of Chelmsford, 
Dracut, Dunstable and Stow, in the County of Middlesex, and the 
Towns of Harvard and Leominster, in the county of Worcester (or 
such of said Towns and Plantations, or any others, as Your Excel- 
lency and Honors shall think fit) may be erected and incorporated 
into a separate and distinct County, and that the same may be in- 
vested with all the Privileges that other Counties have and enjoy 
in this Province ; or otherwise grant Relief as Your Excellency and 
Honors, in Your known Wisdom and Goodness shall see meet, and 



APPENDIX. 145 

Your Petitioners in behalf of themselves and the several Towns they 
represent, as in Duty bound, shall ever pray. 

Abel Lawrence 

Oliver Prescott j 

Jonas Cutler \. Agents for Groton. 

James Prescot 

Jos/ali Sartell 

Jonath. Lawrence \ 

Thomas Warren y Agents for Lyttleton. 

Joseph Harwood 

Jonas Prescott 

William Fletcher y Agents for Westford. 

Jabez Reep [Keep] j 

Benjamin Brooks \- Agent for Townshend. 

William Prescott }- Agent for Pepperrell. 

Hezekiah Sawtell )- Agent for Shirley. 

In the House of Representatives, 
JUNE the 14th, 1764. 

READ, and ordered, That the Petitioners insert Copies of this 
Petition in all the Boston News Papers, three Weeks succes- 
sively, that so the several Towns in the Counties of Middlesex and 
Worcester may shew Cause (if any they have) on the Second Wednes- 
day of the next Session of this Court, why the Prayer thereof should 

not be granted. 

Sent up for Concurrence, 

Thos. Clapp, Speak, r Pro Tempr. 
In COUNCIL, June 14. 1764, read and concurred. 

A. Oliver, Sec'ry. 

It will be seen that the spelling of some of the names of 
these towns differs from the modern method. Lyttleton, 
Townshend, and Pepperrell were formerly common ways of 
writing them. It is somewhat doubtful how Littleton got its 
name; but Townsend was so called from Viscount Towns- 
hend, a member of the Privy Council ; and Pepperell from Sir 
William Pepperrell, the hero of the capture of Louisburg, who 
always wrote his surname with a double " r." While, therefore, 
these forms were correct more than a century ago, long and 
good usage has now decided against them. 

19 



146 APPENDIX. 

It is useless at the present time to speculate on what might 
have been, if the prayer of the petitioners had been granted. 
It would have materially changed the destiny of Groton, which 
was to be the shire town of the new county. 

On February 6, 1776, an Act was passed removing the No- 
vember term of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace 
and Court of Common Pleas from Charlestown to Groton, 
presumably on account of the disturbances of the War. Two 
years later, on September 23, 1778, this November term was 
transferred to Cambridge, to take the place of the May term, 
which in turn was brought to Groton, where it remained until 
June, 1787. The sessions of the Court were held in the First 
Parish Meeting-house ; and the Court was sitting there dur- 
ing the famous dark day of May 19, 1780, when candles had 
to be used. 

The following notice adjourning the Court of Common Pleas, 
appointed to be held at Groton, appears in " The Boston Ga- 
zette, and the Country Journal,' ' May 12, 1783, and is signed 
by three Justices of that Court. It is impossible now to learn 
the circumstances under which the adjournment took place, 
but they may have been similar to those mentioned in a Re- 
solve, here reprinted immediately after the advertisement 
from the newspaper. On the docket at East Cambridge no 
explanation is given, but under date of May 20, 1783, it is there 
recorded that the Court, by proclamation of John Tyng, and 
James Prescott, Esquires, two of the Justices, was adjourned 
to the first Tuesday of June, which fell that year on the third 
day of the month. 

WHEREAS some Circumstances that must happen will render 
it necessary that the Court of Common Pleas, by Law- 
appointed to be holden at Groton, within and for the County of 
Middlesex, on the 3d Tuesday of May Inst, should be adjourned 
to some future Day : All Persons concerned are to take Notice, 
that the same Court will be adjourned to the first Tuesday in June 
next, then to proceed to Business Jurors Parties and Witnesses 
will govern themselves accordingly. 

By Order of Three of the fttstiees of the same Court. 



APPENDIX. 147 

N. B. As the Court of Common Pleas will adjourn as above, 
it is probable that the Court of General Sessions of the Peace will 
be adjourned in like Manner. 

Middlesex, ss ] ^HE Clerk of the within mentioned Courts is 
May 9, 17S3 ) 1 directed to publish the within Advertisement 
in the Papers, and to send Copies thereof to the several Parts of 

the County. 

A Fuller, 

James Prescott, 

Samuel Phillips Savage. 

A true Copy of the Originals filed in the Office of the Courts 
abovementioned, May 9 1783. 

Attest. THAD. MASON, Clerk 

The following Resolution was passed by the General Court, 
on May 2, 1787, and is found in the printed volume of "Re- 
solves" (page 280), where the chapter is numbered XXXI. 

Resolve adjourning the Court of General Sessions of the Peace, 

and Court of Common Pleas in the county of Middlesex^ to the 

fourth Tuesday in May inst. May 2, 1787. 

Whereas by reason of the sitting of the Supreme Judicial Court, 

at Concord, on the second Tuesday of May instant, the sitting of 

the Court of General Sessions of the Peace, and Court of Common 

Pleas, at Groton, on the Tuesday following, may be attended with 

inconveniences. 

Resolved, That the said Court of General Sessions of the Peace, 
and Court of Common Pleas, by law to be holden at Groto/t, within 
and for the county of Middlesex, on the third Tuesday of May in- 
stant, shall be holden at Groton aforesaid, on the fourth Tuesday 
of the same month, and that all writs, processes and recognizances, 
returnable to, and all appeals made to the said Court of General 
Sessions of the Peace, and Court of Common Pleas, appointed by 
law to be holden at Groton ; and all matters, causes and things, 
that have day or that might have had day, been moved or done at, 
in, or by the said Courts, at the time so appointed for holding the 
same, shall be returnable to, and may be entered, prosecuted, had, 
moved and done at, in, and by the said Courts, at the time herein 
appointed for holding the same. And the Secretary is hereby di- 
rected, to publish this resolve, in the two next Adams and JVourse's, 
//all's, and Charleslown papers. 



I48 APPENDIX. 

It is highly probable that Shays's Rebellion, which broke 
out in the summer of 1786, had some connection with the 
removal of these sessions from Groton. The uprising in 
Middlesex County was confined exclusively to this neigh- 
borhood, and the insurgents always felt a bitter spite against 
the Court of Common Pleas, which they had tried so hard to 
abolish. The action of the Legislature in making the change 
seems to have been in part retributive. 

During the period when the Courts were held here, Groton 
was a town much more important relatively, both in size and 
influence, than it is at the present time. According to the 
National census of 1790, it was then the second town in pop- 
ulation in Middlesex County, Cambridge alone having more 
inhabitants. In that year Groton had 322 families, number- 
ing 1,840 persons; and Cambridge, 355 families, numbering 
2,115 persons, while Lowell had no existence. Charlestown 
had a population of 1,583 ; and Newton, 1,360. Reading, with 
341 families (19 more than Groton), numbered 1,802 persons 
(38 less than Groton). Woburn then had a population of 
1,727; Framingham, 1,598; Marlborough, 1,554; and Wal- 
tham, 882. Pepperell contained 1,132 inhabitants ; Shirley, 
677; Westford, 1,229; an< ^ Littleton, 854. 

The Court House at Concord was burned down early on 
the morning of June 20, 1849, during a session of the Court. 
The County Commissioners declined to rebuild, and left the 
matter to the next General Court. On February 13, 1850, 
Mr. Boutwell, then a member of the Legislature, presented to 
that body a petition of Nathaniel Pierce Smith and others, that 
the terms of the Court of Common Pleas ordered to be held 
at Concord, should be held at Groton ; and the question was 
duly referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The sub- 
ject was followed up, on March 18, by petitions from Pepper- 
ell, Townsend, Shirley, Littleton, and other neighboring towns, 
in aid of Mr. Smith's petition, which all took the same course. 
On March 26 the committee reported leave to withdraw, which 
recommendation was carried on April 8, after a long debate. 
One week later the matter came up again in another form, on 
April 15, when the project for a change was defeated for the 
last time. 



APPENDIX. 149 

GROTON PROBATE COURT. 

At my request, some years ago, the late Ellis Ames, Esq., 
of Canton, furnished the following account of the Probate 
Courts held here, which forms a fit supplement to this article. 

No statute in the Provincial period regulated the times and 
places of holding Probate Courts. I suppose the Probate Judges 
held their Courts at the Court House on days of which they had 
before given notice to the public. 

By the Constitution of Massachusetts, which went into effect on 
October 25, 1780, the Judges of Probate were required to hold 
their Courts at such places, on fixed days, as the convenience of the 
people should demand, and the General Court was required from 
time to time thereafter to appoint times and places for holding 
Probate Courts, until which appointments the Courts were to be 
holden at such times and places as the respective Judges of Pro- 
bate should direct. 

The General Court did not, by any law, fix times or places for 
holding Probate Courts in Middlesex County until, by a statute 
passed June 14, 1813, a Probate Court was ordered to be held at 
Groton on the first Tuesday in March, on the second Tuesday in 
May, and on the third Tuesday in October. 

A change was made in the law by statute passed February 14, 
1822, when the Probate Courts in Groton were required to be held 
on the first Tuesday of May, the last Tuesday of September, and 
the last Tuesday of December. 

By a law passed on March 20. 1832, the Probate Courts at Groton 
were required to be held on the first Tuesdays of May and Novem- 
ber, which was continued by the Revised Statutes of 1836. 

By statute of 1856, Chap. 273, the first Tuesday of November 
was changed to the third Tuesday of October. By statute of 1857, 
Chap. 78, the Probate Courts at Groton were required to be held 
on the fourth Tuesdays of May and September, which last provision 
was carried into the General Statutes, and by the statute of March 
30, 1866. these two Groton Probate Courts were removed to be held 
at Cambridge, since which time no Probate Court has been held at 
Groton. 

October 20, 1877. 

During my boyhood the sessions of this Court were held in 
Mr. Hoar's tavern. 



150 APPENDIX. 

An Act was passed by the Legislature, on June 15, 1821, 
authorizing the Judge of Probate to hold a special Court at 
Groton, on the second Tuesday of August of that year. After 
1858 all the Groton Probate Courts were held at the "Junc- 
tion " (now Ayer), until they were abolished by the statute of 
March 30, 1866. 



Tin: authorities of Harvard University, according to the 
annual catalogue issued in the autumn of 1890, have named 
the Groton School at Groton as one of the places where 
applicants for admission to the Law School at Cambridge 
can pass their first examination, which is held each year 
near the end of June. A few places at accessible points, in 
different parts of the country, have been selected for that 
purpose ; and they include Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago, 
Denver, and San Francisco, as well as other localities. 

The same opportunity for an examination at Groton is also 
given, by the authorities, to applicants for admission into the 
Undergraduate, Medical, and Veterinary departments of the 
University. 



In "The Massachusetts Register and United States Cal- 
endar; for the Year of our Lord 1806 " (page 75), it is stated 
that Ephraim Wood, of Groton, was at that time one of the 
Justices of the Court of Common Pleas in Middlesex County ; 
but this was a mistake so far as the place of residence is con- 
cerned, as he never lived in the town. The same publication 
for 1 83 1 (page 52) gives the name of Samuel Baker Walcott 
among the lawyers of Groton during that year ; and this, also, 
is an error, as he never resided in the town, but at that time 
was living in Hopkinton. 



APPENDIX. 151 

An ancestor of the Honorable Melville Weston Fuller, 
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 
lived in Groton near the middle of the last century. His 
name was Nathan Wesson, and during* the French and Indian 
War he served in a Groton company commanded by his eldest 
brother, Ephraim Wesson. Many years later he removed to 
that part of Hallowell, Maine, which is now Augusta. His 
eldest son, Nathan, Jr., was a graduate of Dartmouth College 
in the Class of 1803, who afterward became a distinguished 
lawyer of Maine, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court 
of that State. The eldest daughter of Nathan, Jr., married 
Frederic Augustus Fuller, Esq., a lawyer of Augusta; and 
the present Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United 
States is their second son, and a graduate of Bowdoin College 
in the Class of 1853. 

After his removal to Augusta, Nathan Wesson always 
wrote his surname " Weston," which has since been the cus- 
tom in that branch of the family ; but the brother Ephraim 
never made any change, and his descendants still keep the 
old name. 



152 APPENDIX. 



LIST OF MARRIAGKS. 

At Groton, September 14, 1847. Francis Augustus Brooks, Esq., 
of Boston, to Frances, daughter of Caleb and Clarissa (Varnum) 
Butler, of Groton, born October 12, 1822. 

Mr. Brooks is a son of Aaron, Jr., and Abby Bradshaw 
(Morgan) Brooks, and was born at Petersham, on May 23, 
1824. He graduated at Harvard College in the Class of 1842, 
after which he attended two courses of lectures at the Law 
School, and was admitted to the Worcester bar in 1845. 

At Groton, January 26, 1870. George Anson Bruce, Esq., of 
Boston, to Clara Moors, daughter of Joseph Fletcher, Jr., and Sarah 
(Longley) Hall, of Groton, born January 3, 1845. 

Mr. Bruce is a son of Nathaniel and Lucy (Butterfield) 
Bruce, and was born at Mount Vernon, New Hampshire, on 
November 19, 1839. He graduated at Dartmouth College in 
the Class of 1861, and served with distinction in the Thirteenth 
New Hampshire Volunteers during the War of the Rebellion, 
having been brevetted three times for gallant conduct in front 
of Richmond. He was admitted to the Middlesex bar in 
April, 1866. He has been a member of the New Hampshire 
House of Representatives, and in 1882, 1883, and 1884 was a 
member of the Massachusetts Senate, of which body he was 
the President during the last year. In 1874 he removed to 
Somerville, where he has been Mayor of the city for three years. 

At Groton, June 4, 1804. Henry Vassall Chamberlain, Esq., 
of Farmington in the District of Maine, to Hannah Tarbell, of 
Groton. 

Mr. Chamberlain was a son of John Chamberlain, of Wor- 
cester, and born in that town on January II, 1777. He 
studied law with the Honorable Nathaniel Paine, of Worces- 
ter, and afterward with his brother, John Curtis Chamberlain, 
of Alstead, New Hampshire, and in 1801 was admitted to the 
bar of Cheshire County in that State. He began the practice 
of his profession at Farmington, Maine, where he was the 



APPENDIX. 153 

pioneer lawyer in the town. In 1808 he removed to Mobile, 
Alabama, and subsequently became Chief Justice of the Court 
of Common Pleas in that State, besides filling many other 
responsible positions. Judge Chamberlain died on December 
1, 1855. 

At Groton, September 24, 1872. Charles Franklin Kittredge, 
Esq., of Boston, to Adelaide Louise, only child of George Hunt- 
ington and Mary Jane (King) Lee. 

Mr. Kittredge is a son of Franklin Otis and Mary Ann 
(Dutton) Kittredge, and was born at Mount Vernon, New 
Hampshire, on February 24, 1841. He graduated at Dart- 
mouth College in the Class of 1863, and was admitted to 
the Suffolk bar on October 14, 1867. For eleven years he 
was one of the Assistant Solicitors of the city of Boston. 
Mrs. Kittredge is a step-daughter of the late Dr. Norman 
Smith, of Groton. 

At Newburyport, on September 1, 1829, Edmund Lewis Le 
Breton, Esq., of that town, to Lucy Oliver, youngest child of Dr. 
Oliver, Jr., and Ann (Whiting) Prescott, and a native of Groton. 

Mr. Le Breton was a graduate of Harvard College in the 
Class of 1824, and a lawyer by profession, though he afterward 
engaged in other business. He died in Lowell, on November 
19, 1849, and his widow at Elizabethport, New Jersey, on 
September 1, 1865. 

At Groton, September 25, 1844. Isaac Stevens Morse, Esq., of 
Lowell, to Eloise La Barte, of Groton. 

Mrs. Morse was a daughter of John J. and Mary La Barte, 
born in South Carolina, and died in Cambridge, on August 
31, 1882, aged 58 years, 5 months, and 3 days. Her mother, 
a native of Lexington, kept a boarding-house at Groton, situ- 
ated on Main Street, opposite to the Union Congregational 
Church. Mr. Morse is a son of the Reverend Bryant and 
Susannah (Stevens) Morse, of Bradford, and was born on 
December 27, 18 17. For many years he was the District 
Attorney for the Northern District of the Commonwealth, 
which comprises Middlesex County. 



154 APPENDIX. 

At Groton, July 23, 1869. Burton Willis Potter, Esq., of Wor- 
cester, to Fanny Elizabeth, daughter of Alvah and Fanny Gilson 
(Woods) Wright, of Groton, born December 10, 1846. 

Mr. Potter is a son of Daniel and Julia (Potter) Potter, and 
was born at Colesville, New York, on February 8, 1843. 
Since his marriage he has been a practising lawyer in 
Worcester. 

At Groton, November 15, 1859. Lewis Shearer, Esq., of San 
Francisco, California, to Mary Helen, daughter of the Honorable 
Asa Farnsworth and Sarah Jane (Bancroft) Lawrence, of Groton, 
born January 28, 1839. 

Mr. Shearer was a son of Sextus and Elizabeth (Lewis) 
Shearer, and born in Buffalo, New York, on May 18, 1832. 
He graduated at the Harvard Law School in the Class of 1855, 
and died at Oakland, California, on December 25, 1887. 

At Groton, June 15, 1847. George Thacher, Esq., of Monroe, 
Maine, to Lucy Miranda, daughter of Dr. Amos and Abigail (Whit- 
ing) Bancroft, of Groton. 

Mr. Thacher was a native of Biddeford, Maine, where he 
was born on September 7, 1790, and a graduate of Harvard 
College in the Class of 1812; and this was his second mar- 
riage. For several years he was Registrar of Probate for 
York County, and afterward Collector of the Port of Belfast. 
His wife was born at Weston, on December 21, 1798, and died 
at Harvard, on March 18, 1889. 

At Groton, July 31, 1750. Artemas Ward, of Shrewsbury, to 
Sarah, daughter of the Reverend Caleb and Hannah (Walter) 
Trowbridge, of Groton. 

Mr. Ward was the General of that name so conspicuous 
during the Revolution. A graduate of Harvard College in 
the Class of 1748, he was appointed in 1776 Chief Justice 
of the Court of Common Pleas for Worcester County. He 
was a delegate to the Provincial Congress, as well as a mem- 
ber of the United States Congress ; a member of the Execu- 
tive Council, and President of the Board ; and for sixteen 
years a representative to the General Court, and in 1786 



APPENDIX. 155 

Speaker of the House. His wife was born at Groton, on 
December 3, 1724, and died at Shrewsbury, on December 
13, 1788. 

At Groton, November 19, 1891. George Herbert Warren, Esq., 
of Manchester, New Hampshire, to Mary Hale, elder daughter of 
the Honorable Moses Poor and Mary Harriman (Hale) Palmer, 
of Groton. 

Mr. Warren is a son of Noailles Lafayette and Mary (Bar- 
nard) Warren, of Shirley, — where he was born on October 
15, i860, — and a younger brother of Dr. William B. Warren, 
of Groton. 



ERRATUM. 
Page 88, for Richard Fuller read Richard Frederic Fuller. 



INDEX. 



Allen, Amos, 113. 
Ames, Benjamin, 113. 
Amory, William, 114. 
Andrews, Abraham, 47. 

Baldwin, Loammi, 115. 
Bancroft, William Amos, 77. 
Barnard, Watson Kendall, 71. 
Bassett, Francis, 116. 
Bennett, Josiah Kendall, 66. 
Bigelow, Abijah, 117. 
Bigelow, Albert Marshall, 78. 
Bigelow, John Prescott, 78. 
Bigelow, Timothy, 30. 
Bigelow, Tyler, 117. 
Bond, Thomas, 80. 
Boutwell, Francis Marion, 72. 
Boutwell, George Sewall, 58. 
Bulkley, John, 23. 
Bullard, Henry Adams, 81. 
Billiard, John Parker, 11S. 
Bullard, Royal, 11S. 
Butler, Caleb, 36. 
Butler, John Haskell, 82. 
Butterfield, Charles, 119. 

Carter, Ira Osborn, 83. 
Champney, Benjamin, 27. 
Champney, Ebenezer, 19. 
Chaplin, William Lawrence, 50. 
Clough, Andrew Jackson, 68. 
Cobb, Moses Gill, 83. 
Coburn, Edwin, 60. 
Colman, Thomas, 24. 
Crosby, William, 120. 



Dana, James, 55. 
Dana, Samuel, 25. 
Dana, Samuel, Jr., ^^- 
Danforth, Josiah, 121. 

Emerson, Charles Octavius, 121. 

Farley, Benjamin Mark, 44. 
Farley, George Frederick, 49. 
Farnsworth, Amos Henry, 84. 
Farnsworth, Claudius Buchanan, 85. 
Farnsworth, Samuel, 45. 
Fitch, Luther, 86. 
Fuller, Eugene, 87. 
Fuller, Richard Frederic. 88. 
Fuller, Timothy, 39. 

Gerrish, James, 56. 

Gove, John, 89. 

Graves, Samuel Lawrence, 89. 

Griffin, John Quincy Adams, 64. 

Hall, Willard, 122. 
Harris, John, 123. 
Hartwell, Harris Cowdrey, 90. 
Hastings, Walter, 124. 
Hopkinson, Thomas, 125. 

Jacobs, Charles, 69. 

Kelly, Edward Albert, 68. 
Kendall, Amos, 90. 

Lawrence, Asa Farnsworth, 53. 
Lawrence, James, 61. 
Lawrence, James, Jr., 73. 



i 5 8 



[NDEX. 



Lawrence, John. 74. 
Lawrence, Luther, 41. 
Lawrence, Rufus Bigelow, 92. 
Lawrence, William, 15. 
Lewis, James, 93. 
Lewis, Samuel Parker, 63. 
Little, John Park, 126. 
Livermore, Edward St. Loe, 126. 
Livermore, Rufus, 93. 
Locke, John, 126. 
Locke, Joseph, 127. 

Means, David McGregor, 94. 
Mellen, Leonard, 95. 
Minot. Stephen, 128. 
Moore, Abraham, 45. 
Morey, George, 129. 

NEEDHAM, I ) VNIEL, 62. 

Nutting, William, 95. 

Peabody, Augustus, 130. 
Perham, David, 130. 
Phelps, Benjamin Kinsman, 96. 
Phelps, Dudley Farley, 97. 
Porter, Jonathan, 131. 
Prescott, Benjamin, 12. 
Prescott, Benjamin James, 54. 
Prescott, James, 17. 
Prescott, James, Jr., 27. 
Prescott, Joshua, 131. 
Prescott, Oliver, 18. 
Prescott, Samuel Jackson, 98. 

Rice, Thomas, 132. 
Rice, Thomas, Jr., 133. 
Richards, William Haughton, 99. 



Richardson, Daniel, 134. 
Richardson, William Merchant, 35. 
Rowe, Samuel William, 76. 
Russell, Bradford, 53. 

Seaver, Norman, 99. 
Shattuck, Nathaniel, 135. 
Shepley, Ether, 100. 
Shepley, John, 102. 
Sherman, Ephraim, Jr., 103. 
Smith, Samuel Emerson, 135. 
Smith, Theophilus Gilman, 73. 
Spalter, Frank Bainbridge, 104. 
Spaulding, John, 57. 
Stearns, Asahel, 136. 
Stone, Charles Warren, 104. 
Stone, George Fisher, 105. 
Stone, Rufus Barrett, 105. 
Stuart, John, 137. 
Sullivan, James, 21. 
Sullivan, Richard, 107. 
Sullivan, William, 108. 
Swan, William, 75. 

Tuttle, John Leighton, 137. 

V \knum, John, 138. 

Wallace, Levi, 139. 

Whitney, Giles Henry, 139. 

Whitney, Salmon, 70. 

Willard, Simon, 1 1. 

Woodbury, Samuel, 109. 

Woods, Noah, 1 10. 

Worcester, Frederick Augustus, 140. 

Wright, John, 52. 

Wright. William Prescott, in. 



HK195 



-78 



AN ACCOUNT 



OF 



THE LAWYERS OF GROTON, 

MASSACHUSETTS, 



INCLUDING 



NATIVES WHO HAVE PRACTISED ELSEWHERE, 

AND THOSE ALSO WHO HAVE STUDIED 

LAW IN THE TOWN. 



SEitb an ^ppcntrix. 



By SAMUEL A. GREEN, M.D. 



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